Secret of the Streams
by Ghost
Summary: Ryoga masters a technique that would allow him to defeat Ranma once and for all. But is he willing to pay the price? And what changes lie beyond victory, in the wake of the Three Mighty Streams?
1. Prologue: The Successor

Author's note: A long time ago, I came to realize that I like Ryoga allot, and I thought it was too bad that Ranma became so much more powerful at the end. I started to think about how Ryoga could possible beat him in a fair fight and came to the conclusion that besides working on his speed, he would need a new technique.

Now, I've read a few fics on this theme before, but I found that almost all of these techniques were based on his old Shishi Hokudan, and rarely very effective. I realized that in order to win over the guy who defeated _Saffron_, Ryoga would need something in the same league as the Hiryuu Shouten Ha. Tops.

So I sat down to create a tailor-made Ultimate Technique for Ryoga. Then I thought: "Hey, I can make a fanfic out of this!" And that's how it started. As I was writing, more and more ideas come to me and soon the story began taking epic proportions. What was originally a story about Ryoga grew into something greater, something I wanted to share.

I have decided to write all names the Japanese way, with the family name first and surname last. After all, they _are _Japanese, so it makes little sense to turn the names around.

* * *

**SECRET OF THE STREAMS **

A Ranma½ fanfic by Ghost

* * *

"_Great floods have flown from simple sources."_

-William Shakespeare

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* * *

**

**Prologue: The Successor of the Three Mighty Streams**

It was morning, little more then an hour after sunrise, and a chilly wind rustled the forest in the mountainous Japanese countryside.

On top a large rock in the middle of a small clearing sat a bandanna-clad young man in a relaxed lotus position. Despite that he was bare-chested, the chill of the wind didn't seem to affect him the slightest. Only deep concentration could be read in his face.

In front of him five large wooden poles had been erected. They were all thick as a man's leg and crudely made, as the young man had fashioned them himself from the trunks of young trees before placing them in holes which he had dug with his bare hands. That had been about an hour ago.

Hibiki Ryoga opened his eyes and smiled. Drawing a deep breath of the still chilly morning air, he stood up. Focusing his will, he made the energy that was his life-force surge through his being. What most human martial artists could only dream of doing, Ryoga could do with ease. His ki flared throughout his being and he smiled at the invigorating sensation.

Next, he raised his arms above his head, gripping his left hand around his right wrist and focusing his ki to his right hand in very much the same fashion as he would when performing his trademark technique, the Shishi Hokudan. Then, with a sudden sweeping movement, he struck out with his hand towards the poles.

"_Shishi Tsukai Kei!"_

His ki suddenly lashed out from his hand like a glowing whip, striking the poles that were all reduced to splinters upon contact. Two swipes were all he needed to completely eviscerate all five of them. He then crouched slightly before taking a giant leap straight up in the air. Swiping his hand downwards, he allowed the rest of the energy to strike the rock, which immediately shattered to pieces.

Landing softly among the rubble, he took a brief look at the destruction. The clearing was littered by the debree left in the wake of his attack.

"Not bad," he said, trying his best to sound optimistic. "It's a good technique." But then he just hung his head and sighed. Yes, it was a good technique. But unfortunately, it would be utterly useless against Ranma.

_That ingenious bastard would probably just dodge it, figure out a way of beating it and create a better version for himself, _Ryoga thought bitterly. _And then I'm back at square one all over again._

The story of his entire career as a martial artist, it seemed.

Picking up his discarded shirt, a slightly depressed Hibiki Ryoga headed back to his camp.

It had been almost a month since Ranma had defeated the Phoenix Emperor Saffron at Jusendo. Since then, life had returned to what most of Nerima's residents would call normality. Some things were different, though. In Ryoga's case, he had finally given up on Akane.

It wasn't that his feelings had subsided; he was still firmly in love with her. It was just that Ryoga had finally accepted that whatever his feelings for Akane were, they were but a small flame next to the bonfire that was Ranma's devotion of her. Ryoga had been a first-hand witness of the battle at Jusendo and while he was ashamed to admit it, he knew that he would not have been able to fight with that kind of passion.

So he had eventually returned to Akari. Their relationship was stable enough, but sometimes Ryoga wondered if they were just two lonesome people being lonely together. Even though she was still just the "second choice" to Akane, he cared deeply for her and felt that she deserved better.

That wasn't his only problem, though, for while he might have given up on Akane, he certainly hadn't given up on Ranma. He tried to convince himself that it was fruitless, that defeating his nemesis was an unreachable goal. Ranma was simply invincible, at least to him. But while Hibiki Ryoga's mind could accept this as reality, his heart could not.

And thus, his pride had forced him out on yet another arduous training trip. Not that he got anything good out of it, save for a couple of unnecessary techniques and a few days of solitude to think things over. And just like always when he thought things over, he had come to the conclusion that life in general sucked and that there wasn't much he could do about it.

After taking a cold but refreshing waterfall-shower, Ryoga got dressed and packed all his things into his enormous backpack before heading off again. _To hell with it all, _he decided. _I'm going home to Akari._

As he wandered through the mountainous area, Ryoga noticed that some of the landmarks were familiar to him and this struck him as very odd. With his sense of location, or rather lack thereof, Ryoga was _never _familiar with his surroundings.

_Maybe I'm close to Furinkan?_ he thought darkly. He had tried to stay as far away of that place as possibly lately. He ignored the landmarks he allowed his mind to drift. He had found that the less he thought about where he was heading, the greater his chances of actually ending up where he wanted to be.

Before long, he started to notice houses and he now realized that he had entered a community of some sort. How and when had, as usual, eluded him, but he was walking on a street surrounded by buildings and there were quite allot of people there, too. Ryoga suspiciously eyed the surroundings. It didn't _look_ like Furinkan, but then again, Ryoga knew perfectly well that he could walk straight into the Tendo livingroom or the Nekohanten's kitchen without realizing where he was, so that didn't have to mean that it _wasn't _Furinkan. And he did have the distinct feeling of having been to this place before.

"Excuse me," he said, stopping an elderly man on the street. "This isn't Furinkan, by any chance?"

"Furinkan?" the old man blinked through his glasses. "Never heard of it."

_Ho-boy, this doesn't sound very promising, _Ryoga thought. "Um, Nerima ward?"

"You mean in Tokyo?" the man replied. "Then yer about five hundred miles too far to the south, sonny. Say, haven't I seen you before?"

"Now that you mention it, you look sort of familiar as well," Ryoga said. There was something _déja vu_ over the entire situation.

Apparently, the man wasn't the only one recognizing him. Some of the townspeople had stopped to have a look at him and Ryoga was starting to feel a bit awkward.

The old man snapped his fingers. "Hey, yer the courageous chap who stopped that mad boar! The one that was rampaging through the village two years ago!"

"Yeah, I remember him now," a younger man said. "He was looking for some high school."

"Two years ago? I don't…" Ryoga scratched his head before suddenly remembering. "That's right! This is the same area I was training in before I fought Ranma in Nerima for the first time!"

"Yes, you left so suddenly last time we never had the chance to thank you," the man said. "Tokyo, eh? Not many city-folks come by here these days. You been hiking or something?"

"Actually, I've been training in the mountains," Ryoga said. "I got a little lost on the way down, though."

"The mountains?" the man said. "You didn't run into the wizard, by any chance?"

Ryoga raised an eyebrow. "What wizard?"

The man pointed at a far-away peak. "Ah, there's an old hermit living in the mountains about half a day's walk from here. Kinda mysterious fella, old folks said he had the power to heal any wound or sickness. Of course, I never believed in them magics myself."

"Wizard, eh? Interesting," Ryoga said, thoughtfully scratching his chin. He nodded in a random direction. "That way, you said?"

"No, that way," the man said, pointing once again at the mountain.

"Oh," Ryoga said, trying his best to keep it in within his field of vision. "Well, I should be going now." He wandered off, still staring at the mountain.

"Good luck, and drop by anytime!" the man shouted after him.

"Haven't changed a bit, has he, Kenji?" one of the onlookers said.

Smiling, the hat-wearing man shook his head.

Ignoring how the scenery slowly changed around him, Ryoga made his way in what he perceived as the correct direction. His plans had changed; he was going to take a short detour to look for this supposed wizard.

_If this guy is really a wizard, he might be able to remove my curse, _Ryoga thought as he headed into the wilderness once again. _Half a day's walk in this direction, he said. That shouldn't be much trouble._

* * *

Three days later, Ryoga had absolutely no idea where he was.

"Dammit, where the hell am I now!?" he shouted.

In Ryoga's defense, he hadn't managed to loose himself completely this time. He was on a mountain, and he was pretty sure that he was still in the right part of the country, but that was all. No matter where he looked, all he could see was trees, cliffs and the sky. There were no landmarks and no directions. He was hopelessly lost again.

Seeing his one chance of getting rid of his curse slip away, Ryoga smashed his hand into a conveniently placed boulder, cracking it in two. "Damn! Why the hell does this always happen to me!?"

"Do you mind? Some of us are trying to meditate on the nature of truth in solitude," a voice said from behind him.

Ryoga spun around and found himself looking at an old man was sitting by a fire in front of a cave in the mountainside. The man was giving Ryoga an annoyed look as he poked the fire with a stick.

He was rather small, though not quite as small as Happosai or Cologne. He seemed to be made up mostly of skin, bones and sinews, with a long, pointy beard and hair tied up in a topknot. His clothes were tattered, colorless and of indeterminable model.

Silently cursing his sense of direction, a mildly embarrassed Ryoga approached the stranger. "Um, hello. Are you the wizard I've heard about?" he asked sheepishly. "The one with the power to heal?"

"My name is Senkai," the man responded with a shrug. "I help people in need of help, that is all."

"That's why I came looking for you," Ryoga said. "My name is Hibiki Ryoga, and I've got something of a problem."

The old man eyed him. "What sort of problem? You look like a healthy boy."

Ryoga groaned inwardly. _Might as well get it said straight away. _"Well, you see, I have this… curse," he said.

"Curse?" Senkai frowned.

Ryoga nodded. "Yeah. See, when I get splashed by cold water… I sort of…" He tried to think of a way of saying it without coming off as crazy, but couldn't. He sighed. "I might as well show you."

Over the fire, a worn old kettle hung. Ryoga gave it a nod. "What's in the kettle?"

"Tea," the hermit replied. "You want some?"

Ryoga shook his head. "Maybe later." He retrieved a bottle of water from his backpack and opened it. "Look, after I do this, would you mind pouring some of it over me?"

"Seems like a waste of decent tea." Senkai gave him a wry look. "Why not do it yourself?"

"Oh, you'll understand," Ryoga said and raised the bottle over his head. "Just pour some over me, okay? Ready?"

Senkai gave him a silent nod. Ryoga turned the bottle upside-down, emptying its contents over his head.

Senkai blinked and his eyebrows shot up.

"Well, _that's _new," he said and coughed. Taking the kettle off the fire, he turned to the small black piglet sitting in the pile of clothes. "I hope this isn't too hot, because I can't wait to hear about this."

* * *

"It has to do with a certain legendary training-ground in China," Ryoga said once he was human and dressed again. "Long story short, each time I get doused in cold water I turn into a small pig, and the only way for me to turn human again is to get doused with hot water."

"A water-triggered curse, eh?" Senkai said and stroked his beard. "Fascinating."

"Right. So, can you help me?" Ryoga asked.

Senkai sighed and hook his head. "I'm sorry, Hibiki-san, but what I do isn't magic. I can heal wounds and help fight illness, but I fear that curses are beyond my power."

"Oh," Ryoga said. "I see. Excuse me for a moment."

Leaving his backpack behind, Ryoga wandered off perhaps a few meters and turned his face towards the sky. He drew a deep breath.

"DAMN YOU, SAOTOME RANMA! THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!"

Ryoga's mighty cry of anger and disappointment echoed across the rocky surroundings. Then he returned to the rather puzzled hermit with slumping shoulders, as if his last energy had been spent.

"What was that all about?" Senkai asked.

"Oh, just a little habit of mine," Ryoga sighed. "Anyway, I gotta get going. Sorry to disturb you in your, er, hermitage or whatever."

"You're leaving already?" Senkai asked.

Ryoga shrugged. "Why not? There's nothing for me here anyway."

"There's always lunch," the hermit said. "Why don't you stay for a meal? I suspect we could both use some company."

That did sound tempting. Ryoga shrugged and slid his backpack off his shoulders. "Well, why not? What are we having?"

"That depends," Senkai said. "What did you bring?"

Ryoga stared at him for a moment. Then he laughed, opened the backpack and started unpacking his rations.

One campfire and couple of packages of quick-ramen later, the two of them had already gotten to know each other. Ryoga quickly learned that Senkai was a rather sharp-witted and pleasant fellow who would probably have made a better talkshow-host then mountain hermit.

"So, tell me about this curse," the old man said. "I don't think I have seen anything quite like it before."

Ryoga sighed. "It's a _very _long story," he warned.

"That's okay," Senkai grinned. "I _like_ long stories. You can't believehow boring the life of a hermit actually is. For the most part I only have wild animals to talk to and they don't talk back. A few of them tries to eat me, but it's just not the same."

Ryoga sweatdropped. "…Right. Okay, it all started with Saotome Ranma..."

"The one you were shouting about before?"

"Yes. You see, Saotome Ranma and me have been rivals since Junior High and one day we agreed on a duel. But when I finally got there, I found out that Ranma had left for China…"

And so Ryoga told the tale of how he had followed Ranma, about Jusekyo, and the following two chaotic years. Senkai listened with great interest, raising his eyebrow at some of the more impressive parts. Finally, Ryoga rounded it all off with a sketchy description of the Jusendo-affair and Ranma's battle with Saffron.

"My, this Ranma fellow is really something," Senkai said when Ryoga was finished. "Defeating Saffron, indeed. Not bad for a teenager."

Ryoga wished the old man hadn't been quite so fascinated. "So, you know about Saffron?" he asked.

"Only through hearsay," Senkai shrugged. "I wasn't sure he existed for real."

Ryoga sighed deeply. "Anyway, I want to give up on defeating Ranma, but my pride won't let me. I don't know what to do."

Senkai chuckled. "I do believe you underrate yourself, Hibiki-san."

"What do you mean?" Ryoga asked, annoyed at the old man's carefree attitude.

"If what you've told me is true, then Ranma must be a true genius," Senkai said.

"Well duh! That's why I'm depressed!"

"Yes, yes," Senkai held his hand up as if to calm the boy. "But if he is, what does that make you, his closest rival?"

Ryoga blinked. "Me? Well… I guess…" _That _was a thought that had never occurred to him.

Senkai placed a friendly hand on his shoulder. "You dwell too much on your goals. You should learn to recognise your own worth and appreciate the impact this Ranma has had on your life. Where would you have been today if not for him?"

Ryoga had to smile at the thought. "I… would probably still be using standard techniques in some dojo somewhere." _Like a certain girl I know. _

"See?" Senkai laughed. "A powerful rival is the best motivation, someone who inspires you to push yourself to your limits and beyond them. And from what you tell me, it sounds as if the same goes for Ranma. He owes you the Mouko Takabisha, after all. And if he had never mastered the Hiryuu Shouten Ha, would he still be alive today?"

Ryoga shook his head. "No, probably not."

Senkai smiled and patted him hard on the shoulder. "You are not as far behind as you may believe, Ryoga-kun."

"I guess so," Ryoga said and smiled back at him. Amazingly enough, the conversation had helped allot to improve his mood. He felt better then he had in the longest time.

"What are you going to do now?" Senkai asked.

Ryoga shrugged. "Well, I suppose I'll head back to Akari-chan. After that… I dunno."

"May I make a suggestion?"

"Go ahead."

"Stay for a few days."

Ryoga looked at him. "What, here with you?"

"Why not? The gods know I could use some company," Senkai said. "You seem to be a very talented young man. I could teach you a thing or two about healing, if you're interested."

"You're not a very good hermit, you know?" Ryoga chuckled. Still, it was an intriguing offer. Ryoga knew a bit first aid and how to use his ki to speed up his recovery, but a more advanced knowledge could prove useful. Besides, there was something mysterious and intriguing about the old man. "Well, I suppose a few more days couldn't hurt."

"Excellent," Senkai said and produced a worn old tanto out of his robes. "We will start your first lesson with a small demonstration."

"Um, what are you going to with…" Ryoga began, but was cut short as Senkai impromptu stabbed himself in the left arm. Ryoga gawked. _"What the hell are you doing!?"_

"Calm yourself. Pain is an illusion, like most things," Senkai declared as he pulled the knife out of his arm and placed it on the ground next to him. Ryoga felt slightly sickened at this display of self-mutilation. The wound was obviously deep and bled quite allot. Senkai held his good hand up. "Pay attention now, I don't want to have to do this all over again." He closed his eyes and focused. Soon, a gentle green glow appeared around his hand. He placed it over the wound and the glow intensified. He sat like this for about a minute, and then the glow vanished again. Smiling, Senkai held his arm up for Ryoga up to look at. "See? Good as new."

Ryoga stared at the arm in front of him. It was still covered in blood, but the wound was indeed gone. He looked up at Senkai. "That was amazing."

"I'm quite proud of it myself, " Senkai chuckled. "Of course, reaching this level of skill takes several years, but once one have mastered the basics, it is just a matter of practise."

"It's a ki-technique, isn't it?" Ryoga asked.

Senkai nodded. "That's right, though probably not of the kind you are familiar with."

"What do you mean?" Ryoga said. "Ki is ki, isn't it?"

"Is it?" Senkai asked.

"Well, of course it is!" Ryoga said, but suddenly felt doubtful. What he had just seen shouldn't really be possible, after all. "I mean, sure, there's the Yin and Yang aspects, and my Shishi Houkudan uses ki made dense from depression... Oh, and I know Ranma can somehow use ki of different temperatures…"

"See? While ki is always ki, there are many variations," Senkai explained. "You are a martial artist. In battle, you use what we shall call 'hard' ki in the form of destructive techniques. A healer such as myself, on the other hand, uses 'soft' ki to stimulate the body to regenerate. The Chinese call it "Outer Chi-Kung" and "Inner Chi-Kung," but it's just different names for the same thing. If you want to learn how to heal, a fine control of soft ki is required."

Ryoga nodded, listening closely. This was good stuff. "Right. So, how do I get that?"

"I suppose you already know about the chakra and the meridians?" Senkai asked and got another nod from Ryoga. "From where do you draw your ki in battle?"

"The solar chakra," Ryoga replied.

"Correct. Now listen closely. You start by channelling ki the ordinary way. However, instead of focusing on an aggressive emotion such as sadness or anger, you must try to calm your emotions and achieve a state of peace. Only then can your reach into your soul and retrieve the soft ki. Unlike hard ki, soft ki is generated by the heart chakra," he pointed at Ryoga's chest. "So look for it in your heart. Did you get all that?"

"I think so," Ryoga said. It _sounded _simple enough, which most likely meant that it wasn't.

"Then go ahead and try it," Senkai suggested. "Focus you ki to your hand. You only need a little."

Ryoga did what he was told, and before long his hand was emitting the familiar bluish-green light.

_Right, _Ryoga thought. _Now I'm supposed to calm myself and achieve a state of inner peace. _He frowned. How the heck was he supposed to do that? _He _didn't know anything about inner peace! He decided to simply clear his head and try not to think at all. Almost immediately, he could feel the flow of ki slipping away.

"Now look inside your heart," Senkai instructed.

Ryoga turned his attention towards the special location within his chest, but found nothing. He intensified his concentration. There was ki there, plenty of it, but he found that without an emotion to tie the ki-flow to, there was no way he could reach it. This realization made him irritated, before he could stop it the irritation had turned into frustration. The flow vanished immediately. Ryoga opened his eyes. "Damn," he said.

"It takes time and practice," Senkai said in a comforting tone. "Don't worry, you'll figure it out soon enough. There's a great place for meditation over there." He pointed to an odd formation of cliffs. "Why don't you go there and practice while I make some more tea?"

"Right," Ryoga said and stood up. _This isn't going to be easy. Then again, if I do manage to figure it out, I'll be able to do something Ranma can't! _Encouraged by this thought, he wandered off towards the cliffs.

* * *

It _was _a great place for meditation. Beyond the cliffs were an open area with a few large boulders and lonely tree, almost like a natural zen-garden. Sitting on the most comfortable boulder, looking out across the mountainous Japanese landscape with the vast, blue sky overhead, it was almost as being in the center of the world.

_So why can't I get this blasted technique to work?_ Ryoga thought as the ki-flow vanished for the umpteenth time. He had been trying for three hours now and he still hadn't managed to produce a single spark of soft ki.

Sighing, he focussed his mind in yet another attempt. Again he reached into the darkness and reached for the dormant energy.

_It's just another channel! _he thought. _I've done this a hundred times before!_ But that had been a different chakra. This one didn't respond the same way at all, he had to learn the entire procedure all over again.

As his mind was disturbed, he felt his concentration deteriorate and the frustration growing. He tried to keep his mind free from the thoughts of Ranma, which had always been a source of motivation before but was now only a hindrance. There had to be something else to connect to, something that symbolized peace and tranquility…

Suddenly, the image of Akane appeared in his mind and something happened. For a moment, his irritation gave away and he could sense the flow of ki again. He still couldn't reach it, but it was somehow closer now. It only lasted for a second, though, and then it vanished.

Ryoga frowned. That had been rather strange, but since it was the most satisfying results he had achieved in three hours, he decided to try again. This time around, however, the image of Akane was vague and did nothing to calm his frustration, only adding an undertone of melancholy as well.

"Damn it!" he cried and clenched his fists in despair as it slipped though his mental grip once again. Feeling mentally exhausted, he leaned backward against the boulder and stared into the sky. "No fair."

_Maybe I'm trying too hard? _he thought. No matter what Senkai said, he knew that he wasn't a genius, only very determined. Besides, a new technique wasn't something he'd usually learn in just three hours. It had taken him a whole week to master the Bakusai Tenketsu, after all, and that had been with the old amazon coaching him. But this was somehow different. This was _ki_, something Ryoga felt that he should have a pretty good grasp of by now. He just wanted some result -any result- to show him that he wasn't just wasting his time.

Feeling his mind become fuzzy as he became more and more relaxed, Ryoga closed his eyes. He must have dozed off without noticing, because when he opened them again, the clouds had broken up and the sun had advanced on its journey across the heavens. He sat up and drew his hand through his hair. For a moment his mind was as blank and clear as the air itself.

Trying too hard. Maybe that was it? He'd get the hang of it sooner or later, just like every other technique he had learned. No need to get impatient; that was the path of negligence and negligence was the same thing as failure.

He made up his mind to go back and talk to Senkai again. Who knows, maybe the old man had just skipped some important part or something? But before he did that, he wanted to have one more go at it, just in case.

Drawing a deep breath, he went through the now familiar procedure. As soon as his mind was cleared, he turned his mind's eye inward. This time it came easier, but it was still out of reach. He tried to summon the image of Akane, but all he got was a blur. Feeling the frustration creeping up on him again, he struggled to concentrate and keep his focus.

Ever so slowly, a familiar face appeared. But instead of Akane, he found that it was the image of Akari he saw, as clearly as a photograph inside his head.

Suddenly, he felt the ki-flow connecting. All his negative emotions, his anguish, anxiety and anger, vanished like smoke in the wind. He was filled with an overwhelming feeling of peace.

And then he felt the energy surge through his body.

* * *

Senkai emptied his cup and stood up. The tea had been ready since long but Ryoga had not returned from his secluded meditation and Senkai hadn't expected him too, either. The boy was obviously a determined one who didn't give up easily. Thinking that the kid deserved a break, Senkai wandered off to the cliffs.

He found Ryoga sitting cross-legged on the boulder eyes closed, apparently meditating. As he came nearer, the boy opened his eyes and looked at him. "Hey, Senkai," he said.

"I thought I'd see how you were doing, Ryoga-kun," Senkai said. "Any progress yet?"

"You might say that." Smiling, Ryoga held his hand up and a sphere of green ki formed in his palm. It was small and very dim, difficult to see in the sunlight, but it was definitely there.

Senkai stared at it, looking quite surprised, though pleasantly so. "You've found your soft ki already? You really don't waste your time, do you?"

"Well, it was kinda tricky at first, but then I got the hang of it." Ryoga said. He didn't feel the need to mention that it was the thought of Akari that had helped him. "It wasn't that special, I'm sure Ranma could have figured it out just as fast as me."

_Kamisama, there's _two _of them, and they even know_ _each other!_ Senkai mused. _What are the odds?_

"But he won't," Ryoga continued with a manic grin, "because I'll never, _ever _tell him about it! Whahahaha!"

Senkai sweatdropped. "Well, I must say I am impressed. Normally, it would take weeks even for a talented student. You're a very special young man, Ryoga-kun. However, you still need allot more practice before you can use it properly." As he spoke, the old man suddenly lit up in a bright green light. "Like this."

Ryoga stared, not noticing how his own ki slipped away. The soft ki surrounding Senkai was as large as a battle-aura but radiated nothing but calm and serenity, giving him an almost saintly impression.

"Wow," Ryoga mumbled. "What does that feel like?"

The light vanished, and the man before him was once again the plain mountain hermit. "You'll find out soon enough," Senkai smiled.

* * *

Ryoga spent the rest of the day training on his soft ki, with the aide of Senkai's advice and his own experience in using ki. Once he got the hang of it, he could call upon it faster then before and channel much larger amounts at once.

Healing proved to be more then just putting your hand on the wound and hope for the best. A large amount of will was involved and the wound had to be _stimulated _to heal rather then forced, a concept Ryoga had a bit of trouble getting his mind around. But Senkai was a patient teacher and by nightfall, Ryoga could make small scratches disappear after a minute or two

"I think I'm getting the hang of this," he said.

"You're doing great progress," Senkai said. "But now it's time for bed. I have some other things to teach you tomorrow, so we better both get some rest."

Weary from the efforts of the day, Ryoga had no objections. After moving his backpack into the cave they both turned in for the night. Comfortably tucked into his sleeping bag, Ryoga passed out immediately.

Early the next morning, Senkai woke Ryoga up and took him to a place beyond the meditation area. A natural pathway led them into a rocky canyon where massive cliffs reached for the sky, breaking up a landscape otherwise only decorated by larger boulders and the occasional trees. And though Ryoga couldn't quite put his finger on it, there was a feeling of greatness and awe hanging in the air.

"Quite a sight, isn't it?" Senkai asked.

"Yeah, I can see why you picked this place to settle down," Ryoga said. "So, what are we going to do now?"

Taking one last look around before stopping, the old man turned to him and smiled. "Sparring," he said.

Ryoga returned the smile. "So you _do _know martial arts."

Senkai nodded. "You don't sound very surprised. How did you guess?"

"Just a feeling I had," Ryoga shrugged. "Besides, you knew a little too much about fighting with ki to be without training."

"You have sharp instincts," Senkai said. "Yes, it's true that I am adept in the martial arts, but I have sworn to only use my abilities to aid those in need. That is why I will rather practise healing then fighting. Still, there's some tricks I could show you, but I need to see how good you are first."

"Alright," Ryoga grinned as he placed himself within a comfortable distance from the other man. "Want me to hold back so you don't get hurt, old man?"

"Small dogs bark the most," Senkai chuckled. "You just wait, this old man has a few tricks up his sleeve."

Ryoga took a position. "Ready?"

Senkai assumed a form of his own. "Anytime."

Ryoga struck first. The kick was high and came from the left, aimed for Senkai's head. The old man ducked down with nimbleness uncanny for his age and seemed to slide forward. Ryoga only barely blocked the punch and drew his head back just in time for the following kick to miss. Ryoga lounged out again, and Senkai circled to the left.

They kept this up for a while, trading blows without going all out, trying to get a feel for each other's abilities.

Ryoga had to admit that the old man was good. Probably as strong as Genma Saotome, actually. He was more agile then he looked and moved fast enough to keep out of the way for Ryoga's attacks. He stayed on the defensive, though, and Ryoga suspected that he didn't pack enough of a punch to pose a real threat.

"You are really quite skilled," Senkai said.

"You're not too shabby yourself," Ryoga said, feeling magnimonous.

"Now let's crank it up a notch!"

"Eh?"

Ryoga blinked, and suddenly Senkai was right in front of him. Ryoga intensified his offence, but every blow and kick was either dodged or deflected with casual ease. Like a tape stuck on rewind, the hermit seemed to move with an unnatural speed. Two hands lunged out and pushed Ryoga with an overwhelming force, slamming him hard against a large boulder. He barely had time to dodge and Senkai's fist smashed into the rock next to his head, cracking it.

Ryoga struggled to regain his composure. Forget Genma! This guy was really dangerous, maybe even comparable to the old pervert and the mummy-woman! Ryoga attacked again but only managed to hit Senkai's afterimage. Then he felt a pressure on the side of his neck, and suddenly his legs went numb.

"Got you," Senkai said, standing casually next to him with his fingers on a pressure point.

Ryoga sank to the ground, ending up in a sitting position. "No fair," he groaned.

"It's been a while since I had such a workout," Senkai said. "You've got a gift for this, no doubt about it."

"You keep saying that," Ryoga muttered. "But all you've managed to prove is that I'm still not strong enough."

"Your strength and skill are both fine," Senkai said. "What you need to work on is your speed. As we are all individuals, we all have different natural talent for strength, speed and skill alike. Now, anyone can become strong in an area where there is a natural aptitude, but it is only when we bring all our talents to their peaks that our true strength can be manifest. Because of this, it is essential for all martial artists to maintain a good balance between the three. You should keep this in mind if you ever wish to defeat your rival."

"Hey, I'm no slowpoke," Ryoga said, as he felt the numbness in his legs starting to go away, "It's just that Ranma is faster."

"And he always will be, same way you will always be stronger," Senkai said. "That's besides the point. Improving one aspect of your Art is the same thing as improving the Art as a whole. Especially if you have a natural weakness in that aspect."

Ryoga nodded. Since his legs seemed to work again, get got to his feet, wobbling slightly. "Okay, then how do I get faster?"

"I'm glad you asked," Senkai said. "I am going to teach you a training method called 'Stream Stepping'. It uses Soft Ki and was designed to enhance speed. Please stand next to me."

Ryoga did as he was told. Senkai adopted a loose stance and raised his hands.

"First, you clear you mind and focus your soft ki," he said. "Let it flow into your joint and accumulate there. Don't be alarmed if this makes your limbs feel sluggish and clumsy; that only means your are doing it correctly."

Ryoga closed his eyes and summoned the mental image if Akari. Feeling the soft ki run through his body, he focused on his wrists, elbows, hips, knees... "I feel... heavy," he said. "No, it's more like I'm standing to my neck in water, or syrup..."

"Keep your focus," Senkai said. "Now, follow my movements." With this the hermit started to movie his arms and legs in what vaguely resembled a simplistic tai chi routine, or a series of slow kata. Ryoga tried his best to imitate them. He felt as if his flesh had been turned into soft led, his blood replaced by mercury. But despite the feeling of weight, he soon fell into the routine.

"Have you got it memories?" Senkai asked, getting a nod from Ryoga. "Good. For normal practitioners, it would take months or even years to achieve results. For you, who have already mastered control of your ki, it should only take a few weeks. One month at the most."

"This is hard work," Ryoga said.

Senkai nodded. "When it gets too difficult to move well, you may want to take a break and reactivate your body." He stopped moving and smiled. "Keep that up for a while, you're doing very well already. I'll fix us up with some breakfast in the meantime."

Back at the cave, Senkai contemplated his luck while preparing the modest rations. Meeting such as talent as Hibiki Ryoga was exceedingly rare, and it was a joy to see how fast the boy would pick up on his little lessons. A short while later the food was ready to be eaten. Senkai wandered off to the training grounds to see how his student was doing.

He found the young man still occupied with the Stream Stepping routine. However, Senkai immediately noticed that something had changed. There was a fluidity in his movements that hadn't been there before, and rather then looking exerted, Ryoga now had a look of calm determination. Senkai recognized these signs, though part of him wondered how it could even be possible. _Don't tell me..._

"Hey, Senkai-sensei, I'm not doing as good progress as before," Ryoga complained. "It was getting easier and easier once I got into it, but now it's like I've hit some sort of limit."

Senkai sweatdropped. "That is because your body is growing accustomed to the training. It is a sign that your natural speed is gradually improving."

"I thought that would take weeks before I could notice," Ryoga said, ceasing the exercise.

"So did I," said Senkai. _This boy's talent is amazing! If he keeps this up, he'll have doubled his original speed before the week is over. _Senkai's eyes narrowed. _I wonder… Can he be the one I have been waiting for? _"Tell me, how are you feeling otherwise?"

"I feel great," Ryoga said. "I don't know why, but my mood has really improved."

Senkai nodded. "It is common that one experiences such feelings when channeling soft ki for extended periods of time."

Ryoga shot hi man raised eyebrow and a grin. "It works as an anti-depressive?"

"It realigns your inner balance," Senkai said. "There's nothing odd about that. Come, breakfast is ready and even talented martial artists need to eat."

Ryoga now realized how hungry he was, and back at the cave he happily devoured his share of the food. It wasn't until he had finished his meal that he noticed that Senkai was strangely quiet and was looking at him in a thoughtful manner.

"What?" he asked. "Why are you giving me that look?"

"Ryoga-kun," Senkai said, slowly. "How old do you think I am?"

"Just by looking at you?" Ryoga asked. "Hard to tell. 60 or 70 maybe." Senkai started to grin and Ryoga's eyes narrowed. "Wait, you mean to you're like that little pervert and the old amazon-mummy? That you're 500 years old or something?"

"Oh no," Senkai laughed. "I'm not quite _that _old."

"Oh," Ryoga said, feeling a bit disappointed.

"No, I'm still somewhere around 200, though I've lost track of the exact number."

Ryoga fell over.

"Ryoga, I'm going to let you in on a great secret," Senkai continued. "I am the last living master and herald of an ancient and very powerful martial arts-technique handed down from a long line of healers. For years, I have been looking for a young martial artist to pass it on to, but I could not find anyone worthy enough and believed that the secret would die with me."

His eyes locked with Ryoga's. "You, however, have proved not only to have the necessary talent, but also a good heart and a powerful spirit. You are worthy of becoming the successor of this technique, should you accept my offer."

"An ancient martial arts technique, eh?" Ryoga said. "Sounds interesting. What kind of technique?"

"It is the _San Karyuu Kyodai, _the secret technique of the Three Mighty Streams," Senkai said in a serious tone. "An unblockable and unavoidable killing technique that uses hard and soft ki in unison."

"This better not be another ki-blast," Ryoga said. "I already know allot of those."

"Oh no, it's nothing like that," Senkai assured him. "This is the real deal. Trees uprooted, buildings blown apart, mountains shattered." He shrugged. "That sort of thing."

"Oh," Ryoga said numbly. "No, I don't think I know any of those."

"Now listen, Ryoga," Senkai said. "This technique is so powerful that it will almost exclusively kill the opponent. Before I show it to you, you must give me your word that you will only use it when you have no other choice."

Ryoga considered this, then nodded. "You have my word."

Senkai stood up. "Follow me."

* * *

Ryoga followed Senkai to the canyon where they had sparred earlier. The hermit looked around as if searching for something; apparently a good spot for the demonstration. Once he found it, he turned to Ryoga. "Position yourself right in front of me, at a distance of," he paused to calculate, "about 30 feet should be safe, yes."

Ryoga quietly wondered that was supposed to mean, but did what he was told. Senkai looked pleased.

"Now, I want you to fire a Shishi Houkudan at me," he said.

Ryoga hesitated. "No offence, sensei, but are you out of your mind?"

Senkai smiled. "Relax, I know precisely what I'm doing," he said as his aura surged. Almost as an afterthought, he added: "Though, I'd hold back anyway if I were you. I might hurt you otherwise."

"Didn't you get that backwards just now," Ryoga said, while a tiny voice in the back of his head told him that he may be in over his head this time.

Senkai's entire body was now glowing in a green aura, not very large but even and clearly shining. Though he was prepared to react instantly, the old man had a relaxed, almost nonchalant look on his face. "Focus, timing and pressure," he said. "Each by itself does nothing but when they are all aligned your strength transcends, and you can achieve a power greater then the sum of it's parts. Strike at me, Hibiki Ryoga. I am ready." Ryoga hesitated, but then he shrugged. Hoping that the old man knew what he was doing, he took his usual position, closed his eyes, and focused his mind on sad thoughts and depressing memories. Feeling the negative emotions surge through him, he lifted his arms, forming the familiar sphere of ki in his hands. Ryoga aimed carefully and finally let it loose. "Shishi Houkudan!" 

It wasn't a very impressive blast, but Ryoga knew that it was still large enough to knock his teacher off his feet. Senkai didn't make a move to avoid it, though. Instead he threw his fist forward, as if to punch it. There was a sudden flash, and for a short moment Ryoga was staring into a flaring wall of energy rushing towards him.

What happened next wasn't very clear to Ryoga. It all happened extremely fast, too fast for his mind to register it properly. Afterwards, he recalled a flashing blue and green light and a strong sensation of falling backwards. For the fraction of a second all he could feel was an incredible fatigue as his energy seemed to leak out of him at an alarming rate. Then his body struck something hard, sending a shock of pain through his entire being. An unseen force was pressing towards him, suffocating him and preventing him from moving a single muscle. Weakened and trapped, he was completely helpless and soon slipped into darkness.

When he woke up, the first thing he saw was the face of his teacher. Numbness and warmth replaced a momentary pain, and he realized that Senkai was healing him.

"You seem to be okay," the old man said. "Mostly superficial damage. It was a small one, after all:"

Ryoga looked up and had to gasp at the sight before him. A broad, shallow trench now ran from the place were Senkai had been standing up to the cliff Ryoga had struck. It was as if a giant scar, several hundred meters long, had been ripped across the landscape. The very bedrock had been disintegrated and any nearby rocks and boulders had been pulverised. A large, swirl-shaped crater marred the cliff itself. Lying in the middle of it, Ryoga realised that the San Karyuu Kyodai had more or less drilled him several feet into the rock. "_That _was a small one?" he said in disbelief.

Senkai smiled and patted him on the shoulder. "There you go, good as new."

Ryoga stood up and did his best to brush most of the dust off his tattered clothes. It didn't do much good, but his body was still slightly numb and it felt good to move about a bit.

"Well, it was a nasty experience, I'll give you that," he said. "And it sure did some damage to the surroundings, but didn't hurt that much."

"That's because I never used the final move," Senkai said. "If I had, you would be very, _very_ dead right now."

Ryoga scratched his head. "So, how does it work?"

"The San Karyuu Kyodai is a technique developed by a deep and thorough understanding of the way ki reacts in extreme situations," Senkai said. "The first thing you must know is that ki, when projected outside the body, is always connected to that body until the point it returns to its natural, raw state and disperses into the air. Your Shishi Houkudan, for instance, is not so much a projectile as it is an extension of your aura. The same is true for all similar techniques. Understand?"

Ryoga nodded. He didn't quite get it, but it seemed to make sense.

"Good, now listen carefully," Senkai said. "You begin by focusing your aura with soft ki, forming it into a sphere surrounding you. When the opponent attacks you with hard ki, you strike at the centre of his attack, piercing it and forcing it around your own aura. The pressure causes his ki to cascade away from him at a very high velocity. That is the First Stream. The Second Stream is formed by your soft ki, drawing power from the air itself and creating a sort of slipstream that catches your opponent, throws him backwards and slams him into the nearest hindrance in his path. It will then hold his arms and legs in place while the First Stream quickly drains him of ki, as you have yourself just experienced."

"And… the third stream?" Ryoga said.

Senkai held his hand up, fingers clenched. "The Third Stream is your fist, charged with hard ki and drilling a hole through the eye of the storm as you ride the Second Stream towards your weakened and undefended opponent at divine velocity. If he is weak, your hand will pierce through his body and rip him apart. If he is strong, every bone in his body will shatter and his internal organs will explode from the shock."

"That's… amazing," Ryoga said and meant every word. With a technique like this, maybe he could even…

"Yes, amazing. But also terrifying," Senkai said darkly. He pointed at Ryoga's chest. "The attack is aimed for the heart chakra. It's not the sort of technique normally used by peaceful healers."

Ryoga hesitated. "So, what you're saying is that if I'd use this technique on Ranma, he'd _die?_"

"With your strength and his power?" Senkai nodded slowly. "Yes, without a doubt."

This put a damper on Ryoga's enthusiasm. Ranma was long overdue a beating, but Ryoga didn't want the guy dead. _On the other hand, _he thought, _even without the final move, it's still a formidable technique. It's unblockable, very destructive and drains the opponent of his ki. It might be just what I need to take Ranma on..._

He looked up. "Teach me how to do it!"

"Such enthusiasm!" Senkai laughed. "But I'm afraid you have to crawl before you can walk, Ryoga-kun. You have barely mastered healing, let alone the fine skills required to even attempt to invoke the Streams." He patted Ryoga on the shoulder. "For now, you will practice switching back and forth between your hard and soft ki. Come with me, and I'll show you how."

* * *

Ryoga was now put to work improving and refining his control over soft ki. However, creating an entire aura with the stuff proved to be much harder then he had expected.

Using hard ki was no problem for Ryoga, but he was still only getting used to soft ki and generating large amounts for extended periods of time took every bit of his training. He found it hard to let go of that feeling of relaxation that came with his new ability, and despite his experience, reverting to hard ki afterwards felt strainful and uncomfortable by comparison. And that was only the beginning.

Learning how to channel soft ki had been hard enough. Quickly changing from solar to heart chakra while channelling massive amounts of ki proved to be exceptionally difficult and required him to turn the entire procedure to instinct. Luckily, Ryoga had experience from this sort of training since learning the Bakusai Tenketsu. Nothing teaches you to trust your instincts quite like a huge boulder coming at you at high velocity.

By the end of the day, Ryoga felt that he was starting to get the hang of it. Feeling utterly exhausted, he crawled into his sleeping bag and immediately fell asleep.

The next morning, Senkai declared that Ryoga had done well enough to advance to the next step. The hermit would fire small blasts of soft ki at Ryoga, who was instructed to hit them charging his regular battle aura. A failed hit would cause the soft ki to reflect to the side, while a correct, direct hit caused it to implode in a harmless flash. Getting the proper aim was tricky, and Ryoga was very grateful for the boost of speed he had gained from the Stream Stepping technique. As he threw punch after punch, he was amazed at Senkai's subtle, precise control, and wondered if he would ever gain such graceful skill.

As the hours went by, Senkai only allowed his pupil a few moments of rest before starting over again. Occasionally he would stop and request that Ryoga go through the exercises of the previous day for a while. And so they kept going for the rest of the day, stopping only to eat and drink. Ryoga went to bed even more tired then the previous night.

On the third day, Ryoga was convinced that he had grasped enough of the theory to attempt the real thing, but instead Senkai had him go through a special kata. Ryoga would start by creating a faint aura of soft ki, throwing a punch, shift to hard ki, and then punch again. The sensation of switching from one chakra to another was not unlike having a bucket of freezing cold water dumped over his head, over and over. It was exhausting, but also invigorating, making him feel dizzy and clear-headed at the same time.

Punching, focus, breathing, punching... The monotony made Ryoga lose track of time. Minutes and hours became the same to him, and nothing existed except for him and the image of Akari in his mind. Finally, Senkai told him to stop and Ryoga found that the day had gone by without him noticing. Nearly drained of ki, he fell into his sleeping bag and passed out instantly.

Senkai, the last living master of the San Karyuu Kyodai, sat awake for a long while, thinking. He had expected Ryoga to pick up the techniques quickly, but not _that _quickly. The boy had an instinct for learning that was frightening. It was unheard of that a student would master the San Karyuu Kyodaiin a mere three days, but Ryoga was now all but ready for the final test.

_Such power is a double-edged sword, _Senkai mused. Was that power worth the risk he was about to take? Senkai was pretty sure that he was not mistaken about the boy. But if he was…

Senkai shook his head. Nothing good would come out of worrying. He had chosen this path, and now he had to follow it to the end. Ryoga had already learned too much, it was too late to back out now.

"Tomorrow, we will see if you are ready, Hibiki Ryoga," he mumbled quietly.

* * *

In the morning Ryoga awoke and felt as if he has been asleep for a hundred years. Groggily blinking the sleep out of his eyes, he saw Senkai sitting with his back to the cave wall. The hermit had a thoughtful look on his face.

Noticing that Ryoga was awake, her turned to look at the boy. "Good morning," he said. "Today is your big day, Ryoga-kun. Are you ready?"

Ryoga smiled and nodded. "Yes, sensei!"

After breakfast they retreated to the canyon. The fresh morning air helped clearing Ryoga's head, and he now realized just how excited he was. Today he would finally get to put the secret of the Three Mighty Streams to the test.

"First I want us to spar one last time," Senkai said. "To see what kind of progress you have made."

And so they sparred, and even though Senkai was still toying with him, Ryoga noticed that he didn't have quite as much trouble keeping up. Evidently his speed training had worked. After a few minutes, Senkai raised his hand. "That is enough. You have made great progress, Ryoga-kun."

"Thank you, sensei," Ryoga replied. "I couldn't have done it without you."

"Now, for the moment of truth," Senkai said and pointed at a nearby rock. "Please take your position by that boulder."

As Ryoga did as he was told, Senkai moved to position in the opposite direction. They were not standing circa thirty feet apart. To Ryoga, the whole thing was somehow reminiscent of the showdown scene in a western movie; not just the way they were facing each other but also tension in the atmosphere, the sense of a calm before the storm.

"You already know the technique in theory," Senkai said. "All you must do now is prove that you can use it in practice." He raised his hands and an orb of bright blue ki started to form between them. "This is the final test, so you can't afford to be concerned with me. I will not hold back, so do not hesitate or you will be hurt."

Ryoga nodded, and his soft ki flared into an aura around him. "I'm ready."

Senkai smiled, and then he unleashed the blast.

Ryoga couldn't have hesitated even if he had wanted to. As the wall of energy came rushing towards him, his instincts took over and his body moved on it's own. His fist flew forward. _"San Karyuu Kyodai!"_

He felt Senkai's hard ki give way for his soft and sensed the pressure skyrocket. He suddenly found himself staring into a great tunnel of spiraling energy, a vortex blazing in blue and green. It was unlike anything he had ever seen, a breathtaking sight. In the center of the maelstrom he saw Senkai speeding backwards, held in place by the stream. He almost looked like a bullseye.

Ryoga felt himself taking a step forward. The streams were tugging him, trying to pull him in. His eyes were fixed on the target. _I can't miss…_

He put his foot down hard and had to lean backwards to stop himself, almost falling. The sheer force of the streams made him slide somewhat forward. _What the hell am I doing?!_

There was a sharp bang and through the confusion Ryoga realized that Senkai had struck the cliffs. The streams were pressing him towards it, slowly boring into the solid rock while ripping the surroundings apart. For a brief moment the San Karyuu Kyodai flared into an enormous flower and then it vanished.

Ryoga fell to his knees, suddenly feeling immensely tired. Not the physical fatigue one will usually experience after using up much ki at once, but rather the sensation of being emotionally and mentally spent. It wasn't exactly unpleasant, but it did make him want to lie down and sleep for a week or so.

Forcing himself to stand, he hurried over to Senkai. The master had somehow managed to stay conscious through the ordeal and was already picking himself up, brushing the dust of his clothes.

"Senkai-sensei!" he yelled. "Are you...?"

"I'm fine," Senkai said. A pained expression briefly appeared on his face, but he had already started to glow in the healing green aura. "Well, still in one piece, anyway. That was very good for your first try, Ryoga-kun! I'm glad I picked such a soft rock to land on."

"Senkai-sensei, I nearly…" Ryoga shook his head. "I almost used the final move! I don't know why, I did it on instinct. Sensei, what's happening to me? I _wanted _to do it, I wanted to kill you!"

Senkai nodded. "I told you, it's a perfected killing technique. It draws its power upon dark feelings like wrath and hatred and the hasty shifting between hard and soft ki stimulates them. You will always feel the bloodlust come upon your when using it. Many pupils have instinctually killed their teachers as they mastered the San Karyuu Kyodai."

Ryoga was quite shocked by this revelation. "You _knew? _Then why didn't you tell me!?"

"It is part of the test, of course," Senkai chuckled. "You didn't kill me, therefore you have proved that you have the spiritual and emotional control required to be the guardian of the secret of the Streams."

"And what if I _had _killed you?"

Senkai hesitated. "Normally, there would be another master present to… _take care_ of the pupil in case of such an outcome."

"Normally…"

The old man shrugged. "What can I say, I took a chance. I'm glad that I didn't misjudge you."

Ryoga was silent. If what Senkai had said was true, did that mean that his feelings for Akari, whatever they may be, were used to fuel a technique of hatred and bloodthirst? It was a very disturbing thought.

"Don't let it get to you," Senkai said, as if reading his mind. "You should be proud to have mastered this technique. Now the San Karyuu Kyodai is yours to command; it is forever a part of your legacy. Wield it to protect the ones you care about." Then he chuckled and patted Ryoga on the shoulder. "And try to smile more often, Ryoga-kun. This is a good day."

* * *

Ryoga stayed with Senkai for a few more hours, but explained that Akari would be worried if she didn't hear from him soon. Senkai understood. "Your young heart still belongs to the world," he said, "and you have already learned everything I had to teach. Don't forget your Stream Stepping forms; you still haven't reached your true limit of speed. And always remember, Ryoga, that once an enemy is within the Streams, they are completely at your mercy." He gave his pupil a last warm smile and a pat on the shoulder. "So, strive to be a merciful man."

"I'll visit you again someday," Ryoga said. "If I can find the way."

And so, with a last wave goodbye, Hibiki Ryoga set off into the wilderness, back to the south and more familiar territories. The hermit known only as Senkai watched him as he wandered off in the completely wrong direction, and felt honored and grateful to have met the strange young man whom he felt, without at doubt, would one day surpass him.

"Live well and long, my young friend," he said quietly. "And may that strong heart of yours never know the burden of killing."

* * *

Author's Note: I hope you liked the San Karyuu Kyodai. Make no mistake; designing a whole new martial arts-technique is _not _easy. I don't know how the mangaka keep pulling it off all the time.

Regarding Ryoga's lousy sense of direction, I always found it to be very inconsistent. In one volume he'd be able to navigate around Nerima pretty well, only to be unable to find his way out of a house in another. I tried to find a pattern to it all and have now developed a theory: Ryoga's sense of direction functions in _indirect_ proportion to the amount of _conscious effort_ he puts into finding his way. In other words, the less he thinks about how to get from Location A to Location B, the better his chances of actually getting there. This is also why his sense of direction seems to work flawlessly in most battles, since high-level martial artists tend to act on instinct rather then conscious thought.

Anyway, that's the theory for now. If any of you guys can think of an instance in canon that contradicts it, be sure to let me know.


	2. The Ultimate Challenge

**Chapter I: The Ultimate Challenge: Ryoga vs Ranma!**

* * *

"_Oh, it is excellent to have a giant's strength, but it is tyrannous to use it like a giant."_

-William Shakespeare, Measure for Measure.

* * *

Saotome Ranma, age 18 and heir to the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts, stirred and opened his eyes. As he yawned, the first thought to enter his mind was that there was something different with this morning. To begin with, it was much more comfortable and had yet to involve violence.

A loud snore chased away the last of his drowsiness and he turned around to find his father, in panda-form, fast asleep on the futon next to him. Usually, Genma would awaken before him and, deciding that his son couldn't well be lazier then him, wake Ranma up by some extreme and often unpleasant measure. The habitual morning spar would then begin, an ordeal that usually ended with one of them taking an involuntary dip in the koi-pond.

Realizing that this was his chance at starting his morning quietly for once, Ranma carefully climbed out of his futon, got dressed and snuck out of the room. It wasn't that he had anything against the workout in the morning –these days it was usually Genma who ended up in the pond anyway– but peace and quiet were rare elements in Ranma's life and he had come to treasure every moment of them that he could find.

In the kitchen, he found Kasumi busy preparing breakfast. Not for the first time, Ranma had to admire the dedication the eldest Tendo daughter put into the household chores, always up earlier then the others and always with the smile on her face. Sometimes Ranma suspected that Kasumi was the only thing keeping the house together.

"Oh, good morning Ranma," she greeted when she noticed him. "You're up early today."

"Morning, Kasumi," Ranma replied. "Yeah, the old man isn't up yet, so I thought I'd start the day quietly for once."

"There no breakfast yet, but if your hungry I could probably find something for you in the larder," Kasumi offered.

"No thanks, I'll wait," Ranma said as he sat down by the table. "It's not good to eat before training, and pop won't stay asleep for long. He's not the one to miss out on the morning spar."

"Now that you mention it, Akane should be up by now as well," Kasumi said. "She's usually a morning-person."

"Well, she was pretty tired after sparring last night," Ranma recalled. "Maybe we overdid it?"

"It's so nice of you to train her," Kasumi said. "I know she won't tell you out loud, but she really appreciates it allot."

"I just thought it's time she brushed up on her martial arts," Ranma said, trying his best to act casual. "With all the trouble she keeps ending up in, she really needs it."

Kasumi's smile seemed to get a little warmer. "Is that the only reason?"

"What d'ya mean?" Ranma asked, hoping that she wouldn't notice the faint blush on his face.

Kasumi shrugged her shoulder slightly. "Oh, I just think the two of you seem to be getting along better these days."

"Yeah, I guess," Ranma said. "Hey, Kasumi, do you remember what you told me about Akane after she hit me the first time?"

"No, I don't think so," Kasumi said. "That was so long ago, after all."

"You said; 'She's a really sweet girl, she's just a violent maniac.'" Ranma chuckled at the distant memory. "I can't believe it's taken me this long to figure out what you meant. Still," he added, and his eyes narrowed, "I really wish you hadn't given her that mallet."

"Oh, _I _gave her that mallet?" Kasumi said in mock innocence. "My, I had completely forgotten about that."

"You scare me sometimes," Ranma said. Kasumi merely smiled.

As they were speaking, the otherheir to the Anything Goes School of Martial Arts (Tendo branch) was just coming down the stairs. Akane was still wearing pajama, with her large dressing gown haphazardly hung over her shoulders.

"Mornin'," she mumbled as she entered the kitchen.

"Good morning, Akane," Kasumi chirped.

"Morning," Ranma said.

Akane looked at her fiancé. "You're up already, Ranma?"

"There's a first for everything," Ranma said with a shrug.

Kasumi chose this moment to chime in. "I made you your orange juice, Akane," she said. "Just the way you like it."

"Thanks," Akane said and smiled at her sister as she accepted the glass. Taking a sip, she glanced at Ranma. "By the way, Ranma… Thank you for yesterday."

Ranma blinked. "For what?"

Slightly flustered, Akane stared into her juice. "…You said I'm making good progress."

"W-Well, you are," Ranma said while his eyes desperately tried to find something interesting to look at. "I mean, I'm supposed to tell you stuff like that. As your teacher, I mean…"

Akane didn't respond, but a slight blush has appeared on her face. Kasumi did her best to suppress a giggle. Ranma could feel his own blush, and recognized the embarrassment he always experienced in social situations that didn't involve hitting people. Still, he had to admit it wasn't all bad.

_I wish things could be easy and quiet more often, _he though. He had long since resigned to the fact that chaos and adventure would probably always follow in his wake –and truth to be told, there were times he liked it that way. Still, moments like these were all too rare and he cherished them whenever he could.

"What are you grinning about?" Akane asked.

"Hm?" Ranma realized he'd been daydreaming. "Oh, just a feeling I have," he said. "I think this will be a good day."

"If you say so," Akane said. She finished her juice and stood up. "I'll go take my bath now." She glanced at Ranma and gave him a wry smile. "Try not to walk in on me this time, Ranma."

Ranma rolled his eyes, but returned the smile. "Whatever, tomboy."

Akane half-heartedly shook her fist in his direction before leaving for the furo.

It had been this way for weeks now. They would still bicker and throw insults at each other, but the edge had dulled. Their fights were now little more then teasing, almost playful. Akane would still have her tantrums, of course, but usually only resorted to mallet-sama when the other fiancés were somehow involved. Nothing Ranma wasn't used to and couldn't handle, in other words.

Ranma wasn't sure when this change had occurred. Perhaps it was the wedding? Both of them had been surprised at how willing they had been to marry each other. Whatever the cause, Kasumi was right; they really were closer now.

Maybe that was the reason Ranma had managed to –at least partially– overcome his previous inability to hit her? His hits were more like light taps, really, but Akane recognized it as improvement. Ranma had meant what he said to Kasumi; Akane _did_ need to get better. Jusendo had been a _very _close call and Ranma didn't want to think about what could have happened if something had gone wrong. But it was more then that.

Ranma had no idea why, but whenever trouble reared its ugly head, dead-set on messing up his life, Akane would always end up in the midst of it. And since there was no indication that the general weirdness of their lives would stop with Jusendo and the wedding, Ranma had decided that if Akane was ever to be kidnapped again, he'd at least make sure she could give the kidnappers hell until he managed to hunt them down.

Being a sensei had proved to be more difficult then he had ever expected, though.

The first thing Ranma had discovered when attempting to teach Akane was that Akane wasn't like him. They didn't think alike, and Akane was unable to grasp many things that had become second nature to him. They didn't react the same way and their view on the philosophy of the Art was different in many aspects. This, plus the fact that Ranma had never really tried teaching before and had no idea where to start, made the whole thing rather tricky for both of them.

Luckily, the second thing Ranma discovered was that, well, Akane didn't really need much teaching anyway. She just needed to _improve_. She had already acquired enough raw technical skill to count as a master herself, but she was lacking on the physical side as well as in the areas of adaptation and battle-instincts. For the time being, Ranma couldn't think of anything better then daily sessions of continuous sparring. This seemed to suit Akane perfectly, though, which Ranma found sort of puzzling. After all, they were still doing what they had always been doing, except he now did his best to fight back.

By now Kasumi had started making breakfast, and since Ranma didn't want to be in the way, he stood up and left the kitchen. Opening the front door, he stepped out of the porch.

If was a nice morning. The golden sun had risen over Furinkan but the air was still slightly chilly after the night. Ranma drew a deep breath. He felt completely at peace.

Then a flying kick hit him hard in the back, sending him sailing through the air. His trajectory was accompanied with a bellowing cry: _"GOOOOD MORNING, RANMA!"_

_SPLASH!_

Ranma found himself female and in the koi-pond. Coughing up water as she breached the surface, she gargled a harangue of curses. On the porch stood Saotome Genma with his arms crossed and a content smile on his face.

"Ah, such a lovely morning," he said.

In the pond, Ranma seethed and cracked her knuckled. "Why you… Pops, you're _goin' DOWN!"_

So much for peace and quiet.

* * *

A few hours later, a young man carrying a large backpack could be seen walking down the streets only a few blocks away from the Tendo home and dojo. He had a distant look on his face, as if in deep thought or daydreaming. Despite this, he appeared to know exactly where he was going.

'Appeared' being the key word here.

Ryoga stopped his mindless wandering and looked around. There was no doubt about it this time: he was back in Furinkan.

On his long wandering from the western mountains he had done allot of thinking, and by now he saw the path ahead of him clearly. His meeting with Senkai had not been a coincidence. Fate had delivered the San Karyuu Kyodai into his hands, as if urging him to make one final attempt. He had really intended to return to Akari first, but now he realized that the sooner he got this affair over and done with, the better.

He looked at his wristwatch. Ranma and Akane should be in school by now, which gave him several hours to prepare. He would not take any chances this time.

It only took him an hour to locate the Nekohanten. Within the restaurant, which rarely saw many customers in the early afternoon, Cologne of the Joketsuzoku was just about to tidy up the place after Mousse and Shampoo's latest little spat when the perpetually lost boy stepped inside.

"Ah, Ryoga," she said. She had been sweeping up some broken glass and paused to look at him. "Haven't seen you in a while."

"Cologne," Ryoga replied with a nod. "Yeah, I've been out of town."

Cologne nodded. "As usual then. So what can I do for you, my boy? Need some more training?"

Ryoga chuckled. "Thanks, but that won't be necessary right now."

"A shame," Cologne said. "I had so much fun last time. What brings you to my humble restaurant, then? A late breakfast, perhaps?"

Ryoga smiled. "Actually, there is one thing you can help me with…"

Some time later, Ryoga left the restaurant with his new acquisition safely in his pocket and set out to find his way to the next stop on his journey towards honor and retribution. After a few wrong turns, he finally arrived at the Tendo residence. There he found Kasumi, who had just finished all major chores of the morning and was now sweeping the porch, humming happily to herself.

She looked up as he approached her. "Oh, hello Ryoga-kun. I haven't seen you around much lately." She gave him one of her trademark warm smiles. "If you're here to see Ranma, I'm afraid he's still at school."

"Yeah, I know," Ryoga said. "I was sort of wondering if it's okay to wait for him here."

"Of course," Kasumi said. "Any friend of Akane is welcome in this house."

"Thanks."

"Is there anything else you need?"

Ryoga scratched his head, feeling a bit awkward. "Actually, Kasumi-san, I was also wondering if I could borrow your furo. I was going to visit the public bath on my way here, but I think I must have taken the wrong way or something."

"I don't think anyone would mind that," Kasumi said. Remembering who she was talking to, she added: "Would you like me to show you the way?"

Ryoga blushed slightly from embarrassment. Kasumi was a nice person, but he hated it when people pitied him for his condition. "I think I can manage that on my own, but thanks anyway."

On his way he passed Soun and Genma, as usual deeply immersed in a game of shogi. Soun briefly lifted his eyes off the board as he entered the room. "Ah, Ryoga. Welcome, lad."

"Tendo-san, Saotome-san," Ryoga greeted. "I'd like to use the furo, if that's okay?"

"Oh, go right ahead," Soun said, moving his knight. Ryoga gave him a short "Thanks," and hurried through the door on the other side of the room.

As he closed the door behind him, Genma looked up. "Wasn't that the closet?"

"Hmm?" Soun turned his head to look, and Genma took this opportunity to quickly move the opposing silver general. "Yes, indeed it is. Now, is it your turn or mine?"

Some time later, a slightly embarrassed Ryoga finally found the furo. And so, after a refreshing bath, he stepped out on the porch where he sat down with his legs crossed. After about a minute, Kasumi appeared with some rice-balls on a plate. She put it down next to him. "I made you some onigiri to eat while you wait."

Ryoga figured that he _did_ feel somewhat hungry. "Thanks, that's very nice of you."

Kasumi smiled. "Don't mention it."

Just as she was about to leave, Ryoga looked up. "Kasumi?"

"Yes?"

"How is Ranma doing these days?"

"You know him, never a dull moment while he's around," Kasumi said. "But he and Akane-chan are getting along better these days. And… I think he is happy."

Ryoga nodded slowly. "Good for him."

He took a bite out of the onigiri and couldn't help but to chuckle a bit. Everything was set; just a matter of time now.

It was a fine day.

* * *

"One of these days I'm going to learn how to do that."

Ranma looked down at his fiancé. As was his habit, he was walking on a fence on his way home from school, while Akane kept to the sidewalk next to him.

"Sheah right!" he scoffed with a superior grin. "As if."

It had been a fairly normal schoolday for the two of them. Kuno had tried to challenge Ranma and ask Akane out at the same time, and had earned a booting into next Tuesday for his effort. Miss Hinako had been forced to drain a large portion of the student body in order to stop a riot, after the principal's latest attempt to enforce a new dress code – obligatory hula shirts for everyone. And Ranma had only been splashed once. Over all, he thought he'd come out on top.

"Yes I am," Akane said and put her chin up. "I'll have you know I would have tried it long ago if it weren't for these uniforms. I'd like to see _you_ do it wearing a skirt. Besides," she added and winked, "if you can do it, why couldn't I?"

Ranma wanted to groan. That was Akane's latest weapon in the rhetoric cold war the two of them maintained. _If you can do it, so can I. _It just wasn't fair! He could think of no clever retort to that. Or rather, he could think of no clever retort that wouldn't come off as extremely arrogant, selfish or sexist. None of those worked well with Akane; Ranma had finally come to understand this after much trial and error.

He jumped off the fence, landing gently next to her. "You take all the fun out of this."

Akane smiled brightly. "Then it's decided; this weekend you'll take me fence walking."

"Hey! I never agreed to…"

He was cut short by the sound of a bicycle bell, and for a moment he expected Shampoo to come flying on her dreaded delivery bike. Instead, it was Nabiki who came pedaling after them on her green lady bicycle; a recent birthday present.

After catching up with them, the middle Tendo sister got off the bike and walked beside them, steering it before her. "Hey, neechan and Ranma-kun! Quite a day, huh?"

Ranma nodded in agreement. "It's not everyday you see a large bonfire made up of burning Hawaii shirts."

"I heard Takamura-sensei gave you an assignment," Akane said to her sister.

"Gaah, don't remind me!" Nabiki made a face. "Japanese history, the Sengoku-jidai. And I got paired up with Kuno _again_."

"Ouch," Ranma said. To be fair, Kuno wasn't at all bad at history. Quite the opposite, in fact. He just had a bad tendency to go overboard with it and get caught up in the act. Last time, he had shown up in authentic samurai attire and attempted to rally Tokugawa Shogunate forces to oppose Emperor Meiji. It had taken quite some effort to calm him down.

"I don't get it," Nabiki sighed. "Why does Takamura always insist on setting me up with Kuno-chan for these things anyway?"

"Maybe he just thinks you two make a cute couple?" Akane suggested with a slight grin.

"Urk!" Nabiki glared at her. "Let us never speak of that again."

By now they were almost home, and as they approached the house they noticed a familiar figure sitting on their porch.

Akane's face lit up. "It's Ryoga!" she said and waved at him. "Hey, Ryoga!"

"Yo, Pig-boy!" Ranma greeted heartily. "What's up?"

Instead of answering right away, Ryoga stood up with a determined look on his face.

"Ranma Saotome, I will never forgive you, blablabla, because of you I have seen hell, yada-yada-yada, prepare to die." He crossed his arms over his chest. "Now get your ass over here so I can stomp your worthless head into the ground!"

Nabiki frowned. "Is it just me, or is Ryoga getting less patient these days?"

"He's not as vehement with his threats, either," Akane noted.

Ranma shrugged and fell into a loose stance. "I'm game. You want to start right now?"

Akane rolled her eyes. "You're going to fight _now?_ We just got home."

"Well, I want to get stuff like this done before dinner," Ranma said. He turned to Ryoga. "You're staying for dinner, right?"

"Don't act so casual about this!" Ryoga yelled and threw something at Ranma. "Here, take this."

Ranma caught the small object and looked at it. It was a bar of soap. He started to idly balance it on his finger. "What's this? Waterproof soap?"

Ryoga nodded. "I've already used it. Take a quick bath, I'll wait for you here."

* * *

While Ranma was bathing, Ryoga decided to confront Akane. This, however, was easier said then done.

"What do you mean, I can't come along?" she said and frowned at him.

"I mean," Ryoga said, choosing his words very carefully, "that I want to face Ranma alone, away from people. And that includes you. So I'm asking you now, as a friend, to stay here and not follow us."

Akane adopted a face of feigned indifference. "W-Why would I want to watch you and Ranma beat each other up, anyway? It's not like I haven't seen that before."

_Oh dear_, Ryoga thought. It wasn't that she was a _liar_, he knew that. Had he been a man of large words, he may rather have thought of it as a case of indiscriminate refutation. As it was, he called it denial. The simple truth was that Akane loved martial arts and always jumped at a chance to witness an epic brawl first hand. Ryoga wasn't the sharpest tool in the shed, but he knew her well enough by now to recognize hard-nosed, bare-faced denial when he saw it.

"Look," he said, "this is just between Ranma and me. I don't want anyone else around."

Akane frowned. "But I wasn't going to…"

"If there are other people around, we won't be able to go all out."

Her eye started to twitch. "I won't…"

"This is very important to me, so I really…"

Akane finally snapped. "OKAY! Alright! You've made your point! I'll only be in the way! I know when I'm not wanted, no need to rub it in! _Sheesh!_"

She seemed to collect herself after this initial explosion, to the relief of Ryoga who had flinched and leaned back in fear of violent retaliation. She sighed. "You're really serious about this, aren't you?"

"Yes," Ryoga said. "I want to finish this, Akane-chan. One way or another."

Akane was silent for a moment. Then she looked at him and smiled slightly. "I trust you, Ryoga."

Ryoga's heart skipped a beat and he could feel his brain shutting down, rendering him a blushing, stammering idiot. "A-Akane…"

She laughed. "Okay, I'll stay right here and when you two get back, you can tell me all about it." She winked. "Sounds good?"

_To her, I'm just a good friend,_ Ryoga reminded himself. _That will have to be enough._ "Thank you, Akane."

Ranma showed up in the doorway, his hair still wet after the bath. "Alright, I'm done. You want to get this thing going now? I don't have all day, you know."

Ryoga stood up. "Follow me."

Standing on the porch, Akane watched them leave. As always when the two of them would fight, a small but gnawing worry stayed with her, but she ignored it. They knew what they were doing, after all. Waving after them, she shouted: "Good luck!"

* * *

"So, where are we going, anyway?" Ranma asked.

The two of them had been walking for a while now, and even though Ryoga displayed an –in Ranma's eyes- almost uncanny improvement in his ability to navigate, they had still taken several wrong turns. They appeared to be heading steadily to the east, however.

"To a place I passed on the way here," Ryoga said. "I think it'll be perfect."

"And _you_ are going to take us there?" Ranma said dryly. "If I'd have known this was going to be a long trip I would have brought my camping gear."

"Oh shut up, you're making me loose focus," Ryoga muttered. Then he frowned. "…You know what? Keep talking. It may actually prove useful for once."

"Um, okay?" Ranma said, giving him an odd look. "So, why the waterproof soap?"

Ryoga shrugged. "I just want us to be able to fight without having to worry about our curses getting in the way."

"Good idea," Ranma said. "Look, Ryoga… Is something up? You're acting kinda strange."

Ryoga sighed. "Look, Ranma, I've been thinking…"

"We should have laws against that, you know?"

"Oh-ha-ha-ha, you're killing me." Ryoga glared at him. "I'm trying to be serious, Ranma."

"Sorry, sorry," Ranma said. "Go on."

"This will be the last time I challenge you."

Ranma looked at Ryoga with a slight frown. "You serious?"

Ryoga nodded. "I can't go on like this, Ranma. Somewhere it has to end. I've been doing some special training lately and right now, I'm better then I've ever been. If I lose this time, I'll accept that I will never be able to defeat you. But I have to make sure."

Ranma was silent for a moment, then said: "Will you still be around?"

Ryoga frowned. "What?"

"Will you still be around?" Ranma repeated. "You know, hanging around the dojo, maybe have a go now and then just for the heck of it? That sort of thing."

Ryoga chuckled. "What do you care? I thought you'd be glad to get rid of me."

"Nah, you were annoying in the beginning but I think we've getting along pretty well these days," Ranma said. "Besides, I'd hate to loose the only guy who can put up a decent fight on a regular basis. Kuno's a joke, Mousse isn't any fun to fight, Pantyhose-Tarou is good but he's never around…" he shrugged. "What I'm trying to say is, it'd be dull without you."

Ryoga was surprised to hear this from the person he had trained most of his life to defeat, but also realised that he had a point. The walking epicentre of battles and weirdness that was Saotome Ranma had been a part of Ryoga's life for so long that he had trouble imagining life without his rival. He also recalled Senkai's words on the subject, and realised that he owed much of his strength to Ranma and vice versa. Completely removing Ranma from his life could turn out to be a big mistake.

"I don't know," he admitted with a shrug. "I just want to get this over with. As for what happens afterwards, that's for the future to decide."

Ranma frowned. Ryoga had always taken their rivalry seriously, but Ranma had never seen his nemesis quite this serious before. It worried him somewhat. "Ryoga, is there something…"

Ryoga stopped abruptly. "We're here."

"Huh?" Ranma looked around.

They were standing amidst unspoiled nature; a small glade surrounded by a serene forest. Beams of sunlight fell between the mighty trees, illuminating moss-clad boulders and shrubbery.

Ranma gawked and scratched his head. "Wow, where did all the buildings go? How did we get all the way out here so fast? And where's 'here' anyway?"

"Welcome to my world," Ryoga muttered. "We're west of Furinkan, if that answers your question."

"Still in Nerima, huh? This place never stops amazing me," Ranma said.

Ryoga turned to him and cracked his knuckles. "Are we going to fight, or do you prefer to admire the scenery?"

"Alright, alright," Ranma turned to him and assumed a loose stance. "Ready?"

Ryoga took a stance of his own. "Ready."

They moved as one, dashing towards each other with raised fists. Being a split second faster, Ranma won the initiative and Ryoga had to abort his attack in order to dodge. They past each other and spun around, now within each other's reach. Ryoga saw the punch coming and blocked. Attack, parry, counter, dodge! They traded blows and kicks for a while, neither gaining the upper hand at first. Finally, Ryoga ducked under one of Ranma's punches and managed to grab his arm. With mighty cry he threw his opponent over his shoulder, sending him tumbling to the ground. Ranma reacted quickly, however, and managed to jump to his feet just as Ryoga's knee crushed the ground where his chest had been only moments before. Using his momentum, Ranma spun around and turned the motion into a spin-kick that would strike Ryoga square in the face.

Only Ryoga wasn't there anymore and Ranma's foot hit only air.

"Where are you looking at?" said Ryoga's voice from the side. Ranma saw the yellow and black blur a split second too late. Ryoga's fist came in a low punch aimed for the torso, but Ranma managed to twist his body enough to avoid the worst of it. He saw an opening and this time the kick connected, striking Ryoga in the chest and throwing him off his feet. He rolled as he fell and quickly got back up, ready for another attack, only to find that Ranma had taken the opportunity to retreat.

Ryoga brushed himself off. "You've gotten stronger," he noted.

"You've gotten _faster!" _Ranma replied, his tone suggesting that Ryoga was the one who had made the greatest progress of the two.

Ryoga had to smile. They were back to the way they were before their respective Amaguriken- and Bakusai Tenketsu-training. Ranma was still faster and Ryoga was still stronger, only not by much. He could tell from Ranma's grin that thinking the same thing. They were fighting on equal terms.

As if on a given signal, Ryoga lunged. He threw two rapid punches, both of which were dodged by Ranma, and finished with a leg-sweep. Ranma avoided it by jumping high into the air. Ryoga immediately followed suit, his powerful muscles propelling him towards the sky. As he caught up with Ranma they started trading blows in mid-air, but this time Ranma had the upper hand. Intercepting a kick, he swung Ryoga by the ankle and hurled him to the ground below.

Falling face first, Ryoga calmly pointed a finger towards the rapidly approaching ground. "Bakusai tenketsu."

There was an explosion of dirt and shattered rock and Ryoga vanished into the soil, leaving only a parch of freshly upturned dirt.

Ranma landed softly next to it. "Where the heck did he…?"

Suddenly a hand shot up from the ground and grabbed his left ankle. "_Succession Technique!_" a muffled voice from below said. _"Moguraken!"_

"What the heuuaa_aaaaah!"_ Before Ranma had time to react properly, he found that he was being pulled underground. His hands desperately searched for something to grab on to but found only loose dirt. Soon his entire body had disappeared.

For a moment the forest was still once again. But then the earth started shaking in a series of small tremors. The tremors intensified in strength and frequency, and cracks started to appear as if the very foundations that the woods rested on were being undermined. A large bulge rose, like a miniature volcano, before erupting in a rain of dirt. Two human shapes flew out of the explosion, still locked in their melee at first only to break off and land on opposite sides of the large crater that had formed. Both of them were breathing hard.

"_Mole fist?" _Ranma gasped.

Ryoga shrugged. "I just figured that if you're an expert at aerial combat, you should be absolutely lousy at _subterranean _combat."

"Heh, can't argue with that logic!" Ranma laughed. "You know, I haven't had this much fun for ages."

"I know what you mean," Ryoga said. Then he grew serious. "This is it, Ranma. No holding back."

Ranma nodded. "No holding back."

For a few moments, it was as if the world itself had stopped to bear witness to the final showdown between two young warriors. Eye to eye, still as statues, they both reached deep inside their hearts for their true power. Muscles tensing, breathing stabilizing, minds opening themselves for the Void. The tension between them filled the air, almost tangible.

Then Ranma put his thumbs to his temples, wiggled his fingers and made silly face.

"Bluueeeeeh!" he said, crossing his eyes and sticking his tongue out. "Pig-boy can't catch me!"

After this announcement, he turned on his heels and ran off into the woods.

For a moment, Ryoga just stood there and stared after him with his mouth hanging open. Then, gnashing his teeth, he raised a shaking, tightly clenched fist as a shadow seemed to fall over his eyes. "Ranma, you… I'm gonna… RAAA_AAAARGH!"_

With this savage roar, he dashed after the Saotome heir.

He soon lost sight of his prey, however, and stopped to look around. The terrain had turned rockier, with sparser trees, and he could hear the sound of running water nearby.

"Dammit, Ranma!" he yelled. "Show yourself, you gender-bending bastard! I'll give you a funny face you'll never forget!"

There was a _woosh_-like sound from behind. He turned his head. "Aha! There you a…"

Ryoga jumped out of the way –more out of reflex then actual skill- as a boulder the size of a large washer smashed into the place where he had been standing at a decidedly unhealthy velocity.

"You gotta be kidding me!" he said. Catching a glimpse of movement in the corner of his eye, he turned to see another boulder coming for him.

In his anger, Ryoga didn't even bother with the Bakusai Tenketsu; he simply punched the giant rock as hard as he could, smashing it to pieces. _Did he really think I'd fall for such a simple…_

Then, through the debris, Ranma's foot came flying out of nowhere. It hit Ryoga hard in the face and sent him flying.

_He hid himself behind it,_ he thought. _Clever._

Ryoga landed on his back and could barely afford himself a pained groan before he saw Ranma coming for him. The pigtailed martial artist had jumped high into the air and now held a new boulder over his head. "Time to finish this!" he cried, bringing it down like a club.

In the last moment, Ryoga thrust his arm up. Ranma's improvised weapon exploded in a thousand fragments due to the Shattering Point.

Ranma looked down at his now empty hands. "Oh. Damn."

Deciding that it was payback time, Ryoga hit him with a tackle that sent them both into the face of a nearby cliff. They were now right next to a river, explaining the sound of running water.

"So, you like throwing rocks, eh?" Ryoga growled. Ranma only barely jerked out of the way a punch that nearly caused the entire cliff to crack.

Realizing that he was still no match for Ryoga in a grapple, Ranma tried to break away, but the fanged boy had his shoulder in a gridlock. He grabbed Ranma's shirt with his other hand, lifting him and spinning him in a circle once, _twice_ before letting go. Ranma flew like a ragdoll and landed in the river with a splash. He had just gotten up on all four and was coughing up water when Ryoga landed on top of him. With a knee on his back and a hand on his head, Ryoga forced his face back into the water.

Ranma struggled briefly against the panic of being unable to breathe, but managed to get his arms around Ryoga's neck. He jerked forward and Ryoga was pulled off his feet, ending up on his back in the cold, shallow stream.

Thoroughly soaked and sputtering they both struggled to get their heads above water again. Ryoga regained his bearings first and, not wanting to loose the advantage, threw himself over Ranma. But in the last moment Ranma managed to get his foot out in a kick, striking Ryoga hard in the solar plexus, knocking the air out of his lungs. This bought him enough time to get back up and leap for the trees. Struggling to breathe properly, Ryoga staggered after him.

He recognized this tactic, since Ranma had used it against him before. It was the Secret Technique of the Saotome School, and basically amounted to running away until you managed to figure out a better idea. While it might seem silly as well as cowardly, Ryoga knew that it played at Ranma's greatest strength; thinking on his feet and improvising. Allow him but a moment to collect his thoughts and there was no telling what he might come up with. Ryoga couldn't afford that.

He ran and leapt, trying to keep up with the red flash ahead. Ranma was heading for higher ground, where mighty cliffs lifted the forest to the skies. He took to the trees and Ryoga followed.

They bounced from tree to tree, constantly gaining altitude, sometimes passing each other in the air but always out of reach. Finally, their leaps sent them soaring high above the treetops. They were about to collide and Ryoga put everything on one card, aiming a single crushing blow at his rival. "Fall, damn you!"

But once again, he had underestimated Ranma's air-superiority. With almost contemptuous ease, Ranma somersaulted over his fist and another hard kick hit Ryoga in the back. Nearly loosing control of his fall, he managed to grab on to a treetop in the last moment.

"Dammit!" he swore as the tree swayed back and forth. This was getting ridiculous, and Ranma was still controlling the fight. _Damn the Saotome secret technique! Speaking of which…_ "Hey, where'd he go?"

A shudder went through the tree he was sitting in and suddenly it stopped swaying and started falling instead.

Ryoga jumped before it hit the ground. He noticed that it had been cut cleanly through, as if with a very sharp blade. Did Ranma have a weapon? Or was it a new technique?

There was a whooshing sound behind him. He quickly turned around, half expecting another boulder, but there was nothing. "What the...?" Another whoosh, yet again behind him. He spun around just in time to see a large tree starting to fall towards him. Then another, and another, all severed close to the ground. He dashed and jumped to avoid them but discovered too late that he had missed one. Already in the air, he could not avoid the majestic oak that now came crashing down at him

Ryoga quickly pulled as many bandanas from his head as he could and threw them. The small pieces of cloth whirled through the air, made lethal by his hands, and neatly turned the trunk of the tree into firewood, harmlessly raining down on him.

He recognized the diversion a fraction of a second too late and caught a vicious sidekick from Ranma as he blurred in from the right. Somehow he managed to roll with the kick, but it still hurt.

They were on higher ground now, right near a cliffside overlooking a beautiful lake. _It's too bad, _Ryoga pondered as he landed hard on the unforgiving ground, _that all we do is tear this place up. _He managed to get up just in time to take two blows to the chest. Ranma's fists hit like sledgehammers. _Soak it. Lure him in!_

There was another large rock nearby. Still on the defensive, Ryoga fell back to what he judged to be a suitable distance. Then he dodged Ranma's fist and half pushed, half tossed his rival hard enough for him to slam into the rock. The opening was brief but Ryoga saw it. He launched himself forward in a flying kick. "Take this!"

Then… Ranma seemed to do something with his hand, and suddenly Ryoga found himself sailing high into the air.

"Aw, come on! That's just cheap!" he muttered. It was the old pipe-smoking pervert's favorite move. Ranma must have managed to copy it during one of their fights. _I guess Anything Goes for Ranma this time around,_ Ryoga thought dryly.

About then Ranma appeared next to him in the air. For a brief moment, Ryoga wondered why Ranma was up-side down. Then he realized that so was the rest of the world. "Dammit!"

_WHAM!_

Ranma's airborne spin-kick sent Ryoga shooting out of the sky like a meteor before landing in the lake with a big splash.

Grateful that he had thought of the waterproof soap, Ryoga allowed himself to sink to the bottom, the water helping to cool his hot blood somewhat. Ranma showed up a few seconds after him, having jumped into the water in pursuit. Standing on the bottom of the lake, they both assumed their battle stances.

On the surface, all seemed calm at first. Then strange waves disturbed the water, as if troubled currents had stirred within the heart of the lake. All of a sudden, the surface exploded; blasts of water several meters long shot out in seemingly random directions, cascading jets and sprays turning into rainbows in the sunlight.

Finally, two shapes shot out of the water like rockets. Ranma and Ryoga were soaked, bruised and dirty, their clothes torn and ripped in places. But they did not slow down even as they touched ground on the other side of the lake. They were both running on adrenalin now, moving so fast that rocks were crushed and trees were rendered under their feet.

Ranma wore his usual cocky grin, but Ryoga knew he was getting desperate. Offensively, they were evenly matched, but despite Ranma's recent physical progress he was still getting tired faster then Ryoga. And once Ranma figured out that there was a chance he'd loose, he would not hesitate to pull out the heavy artillery. While Ryoga certainly wasn't stupid enough to fall for the spiral trick, he knew that Ranma could make a Hiryuu Shouten Ha from basically nothing if he really wanted to.

Ryoga wasn't sure if he could take a Hiryuu Shouten Ha and keep going, and he really didn't want to find out. Unfortunately, there was little to be done about it. Only Ranma's ego was keeping him from using his strongest technique, but it was buying Ryoga time. As powerful as it was, the San Karyuu Kyodai had one weakness: it depended on the opponent to use ki as an attack.

He tried to think like Ranma, tried to plan ahead. Stand your ground long enough to force him to become inventive, that was the trick! When faced with a problem he couldn't overcome with sheer skill and force, Ranma would always go through his arsenal and start attacking from different angles.

Only, wasn't Ranma actually getting _faster?_ And his face bore a strangely vacant expression, one that Ryoga found really worrying. Was this that weird technique his father had invented? Umisenken, he remembered Akane calling it. But Ranma was supposed to have sealed that technique. Maybe this was a brand new method that Ranma had developed himself?

Ranma's fist nearly made it passed Ryoga's guard and he barely caught it by the wrist in time.

"You're getting slower;" Ranma said, still with the same empty face.

A sudden brief panic overcame Ryoga and he managed to get his foot up and push Ranma away. At the same time he jumped back in an attempt to win ground. He realized that he had to finish the fight fast. Ranma's strange technique was freaking him out, but Ryoga had also noticed something else when grabbing his wrist; Ranma had turned cold as ice.

_Okay, scratch Plan A. _Perhaps Ranma could be goaded into attacking, then?

Trying to control his breath, he focused his ki. The image of Akari showed up before his mind's eye, and he felt a pang of guilt for what he was about to do. _Sorry, Akari-chan, but I have to win._ He just prayed Ranma would react the way he hoped. If this gambit failed, Ryoga would look mighty stupid.

Ranma dashed forward, renewing his offensive. Ryoga felt his body surge with soft ki. He wanted to time it so that Ranma would have as little options left as possible. The aura was visible to the naked eye now, and even though it was completely harmless, Ranma didn't know that.

"Ranma! Take this!" he called, taking a position not unlike the one he used for the Shishi Houkudan.

Ranma was in mid-leap, unable to dodge, and reacted almost on instinct. "Oh no, ya don't!" His own aura surged and he brought his hands in front of him, just like Ryoga had hoped. "Mouko Takabisha!"

And Ranma's ki exploded from his hands in a giant sphere of golden light.

"I got you!" Ryoga cried, throwing his fist forward at the approaching blast. _"San Karyuu Kyodai!"_

"Wha…?" Ranma only had a moment to register change, but by then it was too late. The Streams caught him and tossed him off his feet like a leaf in a storm. The terrible spiral of pure force rendered trees to splinters and dug boulders up from the soil, smashing them asunder and sending their shrapnel flying through the air. Ranma himself was tossed through three large trees before an ancient oak, as old as the forest itself, finally caught his body.

Ryoga saw Ranma, held in place and weakened by the streams, and his heart screamed for blood. Before he even knew what he was doing, before having time to think, he found himself having taken the step into the centre of the streams. Its screaming force pulled his body, making him feel light as a feather. His fist flared like hellfire as he flew towards Ranma like a bullet through the barrel of a gun.

But then time seemed to slow down, and suddenly Ryoga saw Ranma for what he was: a helpless, defeated opponent. Realisation struck him like a blow. Ranma was going to die.

_But… I can't kill Ranma!_

He tried to stop, panic screaming throughout his mind. But the streams had already been invoked, and Ryoga could no more control their fury then he could a typhoon or a flash flood. He was nothing more then a projectile that -in an instant that felt like an eternity- would reach its target.

…_Strive to be a merciful man._

…_I think he is happy._

..._I trust you, Ryoga._

..._Will you still be around?_

_I can't kill Ranma! I can't! _Ryoga focused every bit of his will to stop himself, knowing full well that it couldn't be done. _He… HE'S MY FRIEND!_

Suddenly, something changed.

Ryoga felt his ki slip away and leave him empty. He had never felt anything like it, as if every emotion, every thought, every little piece of his mind faded until nothing remained but the empty void. The San Karyuu Kyodai vanished without a trace. Time stood still.

And then his fist collided with Ranma's chest. It felt like punching a hard pillow, his hand sinking into the flesh. There was a sickly crunch and Ranma's shirt was partially ripped to shreds by the force. A spray of blood erupted from his mouth and his eyes stared into nothingness. Then a spasm went through his body and he went limp, his head hanging down.

For a moment, everything was still. Taking a hold of Ranma's shoulders, Ryoga stared at the lifeless form in front of him.

To his great relief, Ranma moved his head. He looked up, and Ryoga stared at his blood-tainted face in disbelief. It was very pale, but a smile still somehow found its way to his lips. "Th-that was… a cool… technique…" Ranma's voice was but a raspy whisper.

"No!" Ryoga shook his head. "Ranma…"

"Was a… g-great fight…huh?" Ranma tried to say something more, but started to cough up large amounts of blood instead. "Urgh… D-dammit…"

Suddenly, an unexplainable anger started to burn within Ryoga. He felt angry at Ranma, at himself and the world in general. This wasn't how it was supposed to be! "Oh no, you don't! You're not getting out of this that easy! I won't let you die on me and… _and leave all those people behind!"_

"Don't… worry…" Ranma managed to grin through the blood. "Ain't… dyin'… yet…"

"Ranma!" Ryoga could se him slipping away in front of him. _"_Ranma! _Ranma!"_

Ryoga was panicking. His San Karyuu Kyodai had depleted Ranma's ki-reserve, and even with his ki at maximum these injuries would be severe. If he didn't get medical treatment fast, Ranma would definitely die. If there was only something he could…

_The healing techniques Senkai taught me!_ Ryoga remembered his teacher telling him that they would only heal lighter wounds, but if he used them on Ranma he might stay alive long enough to…

Ranma's breathing was becoming more and more shallow by the minute. Soon he would cease to breathe altogether. Ryoga struggled to bring focus to his mind and find the will to summon his energy.

It was hard, harder then it had ever been before. Whatever he had done to disrupt the San Karyuu Kyodai, it had weakened him considerably. But after a few seconds, each of them feeling like a lifetime in itself, soft ki started to flow through his being. It was only a little at first, but slowly the flow grew stronger. Ryoga's turmoiled mind was instantly calmed and he knew what to do. Gently placing his hand on Ranma's unconscious body, Ryoga started the healing process.

He concentrated his efforts on the heart and lungs, which had received the worst damage. He also tried to stimulate Ranma's chakras, in hope of allowing his ki to replenish quicker. He didn't really know what he was doing, but it seemed to work. Ranma's breathing stabilized and his life-force returned, ever so slowly. Hope sparked in Ryoga's heart, but it was still too soon to relax. He had to act quickly or it would be too late.

Hoping that Ranma was well enough to be moved, Ryoga picked him up and prayed that he would find a hospital in time.

* * *

Author's Note: It took me over a bloody week to write that battle, dammit! XX

When I started, I wasn't entirely sure how it was to play out; I just knew I wanted it huge and epic. In fact, some of the elements I wanted to add didn't actually make it to the finished version, because I couldn't get them to fit. Oh well, I hope its still adequate.


	3. Breaking the Cycles, Part 1

**Chapter II: Breaking the Cycles, Part I**

* * *

"_Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another: What! You too? I thought I was the only one."_

-C.S. Lewis

* * *

Ryoga leaned his head into his hands and wishes, again and again, that he could turn back time and undo the past. 

A nurse said something. He didn't hear her. Every inch of him ached, every muscle was in pain and he could feel fresh bruises flare up all over his body. But such physical discomfort meant little compared to the guilt he felt like a blade on his heart.

He had been running blindly through the wilderness, carrying the half-dead Ranma in his arms, for God knows how long before he finally found himself within civilization again. By the time he got to the hospital he'd been sure he was too late. They had put Ranma on a stretcher and rushed away with him, babbling large words that Ryoga didn't understand. He had answered questions without hearing himself speak. Then he just sat down and waited.

He didn't like hospitals. There was something wrong with the way the air smelled.

_How many times? _he thought. How many times had he threatened to kill Ranma? How many times had he wished him dead? In blazing anger, perhaps, or just as a means of intimidation. Had he ever really meant it? Ryoga felt ill just thinking about it.

"Ryoga!"

He looked up, and they were all there. Akane, Nabiki, Kasumi and Soun. Genma and Nodoka.

"Ryoga!" Soun repeated. "What happened?"

Genma seemed on the verge of panic. "Where is my son?"

"Ryoga," Akane said quietly. "What have you done?"

"I…" Ryoga tried to speak but the words refused to come.

_They're scared_, he realized. Not angry or disappointed or judgmental. Just scared, worried and confused. Ordinary parents fearing for their only child, friends close enough to be family who dreaded the loss of a son, a brother, a husband. Even Nabiki bore a face of genuine worry. "I-I'm sorry, I…"

"Ah, Saotome and Tendo, I presume?"

A doctor approached them. Middle aged with glasses, mustaches and thinning hair, white coat and all. "I'm Dr Hazama."

Genma, Nodoka and Akane all tried to speak at once:

"How is Ranma doing?"

"Is my son…? Is he…?"

"Is Ranma going to be alright?"

Dr Hazama had to put his hands up to silence them. "Everyone calm down! Ranma's condition is critical, but stable. Frankly, I'm amazed he's doing this well considering the extensive damage his body has taken. I've never seen anything like it." He corrected his glasses, coughed and looked down at the journal in his hand. "All in all, Saotome-san has suffered internal bleeding, a near collapse of the lungs and multiple broken ribs. He also shows signs of having suffered a temporary cardiac arrest, and we suspect minor myocardial contusion." Noticing their confused looks, he added: "That means bruising on the heart."

"But is he going to be _alright?"_ Akane asked, almost pleading.

Hazama sighed and gave her a compassionate look. "To be honest, it's too early to tell. But your Ranma-san _is _a rather impressive specimen, and provided his lungs hold together he should recover given time." He smiled slightly. "Actually, he's already managed to surprise us. When he was brought in we feared that an artery had burst and we were all but ready for surgery, but then the bleeding just seemed to stop on its own."

"Ranma is… a quick healer," Genma said, breathing out a sigh of relief. "Thank you, doctor."

"Oh, if you want to thank someone, it should be the young man who brought your son here in the first place," Hazama said with a nod towards Ryoga. "If he hadn't been so quick to act, it might have been too late."

Ryoga turned his head down, unable to face them. He could feel their eyes on him, though, and he wished he could just vanish.

Soun cleared his throat. "Can we see him?"

Dr Hazama nodded. "Right this way. Naturally, we're keeping him sedated, but I doubt he could talk even if he was awake."

They followed him to Ranma's room at the trauma ward. Ryoga scampered in last, unsure if his presence would even be tolerated.

Seeing Ranma was… unreal. Unconscious in a hospital bed, hooked up to all kinds of strange machinery. A breath mask supplied him oxygen through a plastic tube. Bandages covered most of his chest. Ryoga was grateful; it spared the assembled family the sight of the large, gruesome bruise he knew was hidden underneath.

"I'll just leave you alone with him for a few minutes," Hazama said, backing out of the room, closing the door behind him.

Nodoka put her hand over her mouth, too late to stop something between a gasp and sob from escaping. "Oh, Ranma…"

As a tear rolled down her cheek, Kasumi put a comforting hand on her shoulder, even though she didn't seem far from tears herself. Soun had already started his own waterworks, the emotions finally getting the better of him. Nabiki was hugging her arms, obviously uncomfortable with the situation and unsure of how to act. Akane simply stared at Ranma's resting shape. Ryoga couldn't see her face.

Genma, on the other hand, turned to face him with a grim expression.

"Ryoga," he said sternly. _"What happened?"_

Ryoga drew a deep breath. He let his shoulder slump, his arms hanging loosely by his sides. "I… I make no excuses. I lost control."

Still with tears in his eyes, Soun turned his head. "You _lost control?"_

"I didn't…" Ryoga began, but fell silent and hung his head. "Yes. I did something I wasn't supposed to do, and it all went wrong. It's all my fault."

"...Is this what you meant?"

Ryoga looked up. "Akane?"

Akane's shoulders were shaking. "You told me you wanted to end it. One way or another. That's what you said, wasn't it?" She turned around, with her eyes filled with tears and anger. "Is this it? Is _this _what you meant?"

"A-Akane…" Ryoga stared at her, slowly shaking his head. "You have to believe me, I never wanted this to happen!"

"Shut up," she growled. "You just shut up! You're all the same! You _always _have to win, and you _never _stop to think about the losers! All… All you can do is fight and fight and _fight _just so you can be the big strong man who doesn't loose! Well, Ranma might die now because of your stupid rivalry and then you'll never have loose to him again! That would make you really happy, wouldn't it, _P-Chan?"_

Her words struck Ryoga like one of Ranma's blows. The shock numbed his mind and for a few moments he could only stare at her; a crying, furious teenager who had just caused his heart to cease its beating. It couldn't be true.

"..stop it…"

It was like a soap bubble bursting. Every pair of eyes in the room immediately turned to the bed. Akane gasped and brought her hand to her mouth.

"…Akane... stop it," Ranma said weakly, slowly opening his eyes. His voice was only a whisper made from whatever sighs his broken lungs could produce, and obscured by the mask covering his face, but they all heard it. "He didn't mean to…" 

They all rushed to his side, all their anger washed away by the sound of his voice. "Ranma, take it easy!" Akane pleaded. "You need to rest!"

Ranma shook his head. "Wanna talk t'Ryoga."

They looked at Ryoga. The lost boy hesitated for a second, but then walked up to the bed. "I'm here, Ranma," he said.

"Hey, Ryoga…" Ranma wheezed. "I lost, didn't I? Is funny… Doesn't feel as bad… as I thought it would…"

"Ranma…" Ryoga began, but found no words.

"Wanna rematch… when I'm up again," Ranma mumbled with a smile on his lips. "Bastard… y'ruined… my favorite shirt…"

With those words, he closed his eyes and faded back into unconsciousness.

The room fell silent. It was as if Ranma's brief awakening had taken the edge of the emotions and now none of them knew what to feel anymore.

Soun was the first to break the silence. "This… This has been hard on us all. We should go now, Ranma needs his rest."

Ryoga barely heard him. He was still in a state of shock; too much had happened too fast. He felt someone gently tug his arm. Looking up, he saw Akane. She held him loosely, resolutely keeping her eyes on the floor. Her anger was gone, replaced by a sort of melancholic thoughtfulness.

_Oh my god she knows she knows she knows about the curse oh my god…_

"Dad," Akane said. "I think Ryoga and I need to talk."

For a moment, Soun seemed on the verge of objecting, but then his features softened. He sighed. "Don't take too long."

* * *

It was an ice-cream parlor, a few minutes walk from the hospital. Akane had led Ryoga there without either of them saying a word. They were now sitting by a table with a sundae each in front of them.

Ryoga wondered what to say. He realized he should probably apologize, but how? Somehow he felt that 'Sorry I hospitalized your fiancé' wouldn't do. A minute went by in silence, and finally Ryoga steeled himself. He had to say _something. _"Akane, I'm s…"

"I'm sorry!" Akane blurted out, quickly interrupting him.

Ryoga blinked. "What?"

"I-I'm sorry," she repeated. "For all those horrible things I said to you back there. I know you're not a bad person, and I'm sure you didn't mean for it to happen this way. I just… I'm just so _scared_, you know?" She drew a deep, shivering breath. "I've never seen him like that before, all helpless and broken. I realized how close I was to loosing him and I… I guess I lashed out."

"No," Ryoga whispered. "No, you were right. I was an idiot to… I shouldn't have…"

…_Remember, Ryoga, that once an enemy is within the streams they are completely at your mercy…_

…_Wield it to protect the ones you care about…_

"Dammit," he whispered. "How did it get to this? It's all wrong!"

"Hey," Akane said. "Look, don't beat yourself up over something you can't change. I know Ranma, and I know he wouldn't want that. I… I don't know what happened back there, but Ranma is still alive. You've got another chance."

Ryoga looked up, finally meeting her eyes. "You think so?"

"Sure," she said. "I mean, maybe you two could finally start over now?"

"Ha, I wish," Ryoga said with a nervous laugh. "You heard Ranma back there, he still wants a rematch."

"Yeah," Akane chuckled. "I guess he's just stubborn that way."

There was an awkward silence. Ryoga poked his melting sundae.

"So," he said, slowly. "P-Chan, eh?"

Akane looked down, suddenly embarrassed. "Mm-hm."

"How long have you…?"

"I found out last month, just after you guys left for Jusendo," Akane shrugged. "I hadn't seen you –that is, I hadn't seen P-Chan– for a while, and then…"

* * *

_"Dad, have you seen P-Chan lately?" _

_Soun lowered his newspaper. "Huh?" _

"_Have you seen P-Chan?" Akane repeated. "He's been gone longer then usual this time. I hope nothing's happened to him."_

"_Oh, I wouldn't worry. He can take care of himself," Soun said, disappearing behind the newspaper again._

_Akane sighed. "I guess you're right. I just wish I knew where he is."_

"_He's in China."_

_She frowned. "Dad, you're not making any sense. Why on earth would P-Chan be in China?"_

_Soun stopped reading and slowly folded the newspaper together. "Akane, I think it's about time we had a little talk about that pig of yours…"_

* * *

Ryoga blinked. "Hey, that's right! I had almost forgotten that your dad knew about it."

"To tell the truth, it didn't come as a _complete_ surprise," Akane admitted, looking rather awkward. "I did wonder why you followed the others to China in the first place. And then there's all the stuff Ranma did, chasing you around with a kettle, dropping stupid hints all the time…" She shook her head. "I should have guessed it a long time ago, but I suppose I didn't want to accept it." She chuckled. "Boy, did feel silly after dad finally told me."

Ryoga steeled himself for the inevitable question. "So, are you… um, _mad _at me?"

"No, but I _was_," Akane said, suddenly giving him a very serious look. "When I had just found out, I was so mad I didn't know what to do. I felt… _betrayed, _somehow. Oh, I must have thought about a hundred ways of hurting you." She grinned. "I even borrowed one of Kasumi's cookbooks and looked up a few pork-related recipes."

Ryoga swallowed.

"But then…" She shrugged, and her features softened. "Well, I guess I calmed down. And then I remembered the other things. Like how you would always turn around and look into a wall whenever I undressed, or the way you would comfort me when I was sad. I decided to talk to you about it when you got back from China, but things kept getting in the way. When the bird-people kidnapped me, I simply didn't have time to think about it. After we won and Jusenkyo was flooded, I didn't have the heart to bring it up. Then there was the whole wedding-thing," she blushed a bit when mentioning this, "and after that you disappeared again."

She made a pause and looked at him.

"So, what now?" Ryoga asked carefully.

Akane smiled at his nervous look. "Ryoga, you're my friend. You always have been. I wish you could have told me you were P-Chan from the beginning, but what's done is done."

Ryoga could barely believe his ears. A wave of relief overcame him. It was finally over. He leaned back in his chair, closed his eyes and chuckled.

"You know, I've feared this day for so long," he said. "But now, with all that's going on, it just feels so… minor."

"What will you do now?" Akane asked.

"I'm going home," Ryoga said and got out of his chair. "I think I need some time alone, to think things over. 'Sides, I doubt I'll be welcome around your place anytime soon."

"I wouldn't say that," Akane said, also standing up. "I'll talk to dad, see if I can calm him down." She gave him a small smile. "You did promise you'd tell me about the fight."

"Not quite.," Ryoga said. "I promised we'd _both _come back and tell you."

Akane bit her lip, and for a moment he thought she'd cry again. No tears came this time but she still threw her arms around him, hugging him hard. "He's going to be fine, right?"

"Of course he will," Ryoga said. "He's Ranma, after all."

She let go of him and smiled. "I'll still hold you two to that promise."

As he left both Akane and the ice-cream parlor behind, Ryoga wondered what strange game fate was playing with him. His greatest ambition and greatest fear had both been resolved in the same day, but neither in the way he had expected.

A sudden wind ruffled Ryoga's hair. Unbeknownst to him, change had arrived to Nerima, and it had come to stay.

* * *

Dr Hazama hummed to himself. It was a bad habit of his.

The Saotomes and Tendos had left several minute ago, but he had decided to check in on Saotome Ranma one last time. It had been a slow week, and aside from the young newcomer, nothing really out of the ordinary. Hazama just hoped that the good luck and remarkable resilience the young man had demonstrated thus far would not wane. That girl had seemed so relieved when he told her that Saotome would recover. Hazama smiled. She had reminded him a bit of his own daughter.

Still humming, he stepped into Saotome's room and briefly made sure everything was in order. _It's really too bad when things like this happen to the young ones, _he mused. _Though, come to think of it, we still don't really know what happened to him._

There were several theories circulating among the doctors and personal that had examined him. One was that Ranma had been hit by a car at high speed. After all, traffic accidents were the most common cause of BAT, or Blunt Abdomal Trauma. This failed to explain the strange symmetry of the impact, however. Another suggested he had been hit in the chest with a heavy blunt object. Say, a big hardwood mallet?

Then of course, there was Hazama's personal favourite: hit by a big hardwood mallet _mounted _on a car driving at high speed.

"Well, everything seems to be in order," he said, as much to himself as to Ranma. "Don't you worry, Saotome-san. We'll have you back on your feet in no time."

"…sounds great…"

Hazama immediately stopped his humming and stared at the boy. "Goodness gracious. Are you _awake?"_

"…think so," Ranma mumbled. "M'chest hurts…"

Hazama nodded, slowly. "Ah. Yes. That's to be expected. You probably shouldn't speak. In fact, why don't you try your best to go back to sleep while I… I think I have to…" With an admirable effort, Dr Hazama collected himself. "Just try to relax, I'll be back with someone in a minute."

"…kay…"

Hazama left the room and hurried off to find the hospital's anesthetist. As inconceivable as it may seem, it would appear that Saotome's body was actually resisting the anesthesia. _This guy can't be for real!_

As he passed the corridor leading to the reception, an outraged cry caught his ear. He skid to a halt and leaned back to have a look.

Three attractive girls in their upper teens had laid siege to the reception and they seemed all but ready to devour the poor receptionist.

"What do you mean, visiting hours are over!?" the raven-haired one bellowed. "I am Kuno Kodachi, the Black Rose of St Hebereke, and I demand to see my darling Saotome Ranma right away!"

"Hey, back off!" the brunette growled. "Unlike you, I'm actually his fiancé!"

"So what?" said the purple-haired one. "I be his wife!" 

Hazama sweatdropped. _I think I'm starting to understand why Saotome-san ended up in trauma, _he thought.

* * *

Despite his best efforts, Ryoga had managed to loose his way again. However, he took some comfort in the fact that he was still in Furinkan. In a relative way of speaking, his house was just around the corner. Now he only needed to find it.

Aimlessly wandering the streets brought back memories. When they were younger, Ranma always used to lead him home when he got lost. Ryoga had been just as embarrassed every time. Having to be shown the way to his own house like a little child had, at the time, seemed to him like the ultimate disgrace. In fact, it was probably the very basis of their rivalry.

Thinking back on it now, Ryoga realized that he owed Ranma allot. Not just for showing the way, but for the unconditional companionship he had offered. Ryoga had always been shy, not just around girls but everyone. Because of this, and his tendency to constantly loose his way, he had never been a person to make many friends. But Ranma was different, perhaps because he didn't have many friends of his own. And while Ryoga had regarded Ranma as a nemesis to overcome, Ranma had seen Ryoga as one of the few who shared his own passion and could understand him.

_I was such an idiot, _Ryoga thought darkly. All those years wasted on bitterness and depression…

He looked up and realized that he recognized the area. Only vaguely at first, but then it hit him: this was the very empty lot where he and Ranma were supposed to have had their great duel those two years ago. He was only about five hundred yards from his home.

The lot was even more worse for wear now then it had been back then. Apparently the owners had abandoned and forgotten about it long ago. Ryoga absently kicked an old can that littered the ground. It flew straight across the lot and nearly disintegrated as it embedded itself in the wooden fence. He recalled the four frantic days he had spent trying to locate the damned place, only to find that Ranma had already left for China on the previous day. He wondered what would have happened if he arrived on time, how it could have changed the outcome of his and Ranma's lives.

He shook his head. That kind of thinking was useless. What's done is done. It would do no good dwelling on the past.

He turned to leave, but stopped. He hesitated for a moment, but then he closed his eyes and drew a deep breath. Slowly, he raised his arms into the air.

_"PERFECT SHISHI HOKOUDAN!"_

Nearby people stopped stared as an orb of scarlet energy descended upon the lot to the sound of thunderous crashing. Some dove for cover, fearing an explosion. Others doubted their very senses. The force of the technique smashed the ground, shattering rock and wood, grinding litter into its primary components. And in the centre of the pillar of super-dense ki, Hibiki Ryoga stood as still as a statue. When it was over, he was standing in the middle of a shallow crater. The empty lot had been completely obliterated in a matter of seconds. Ryoga opened his eyes and beheld the destruction. "That felt good," he declared to no one in particular.

And then, feeling rather satisfied, he headed off in the general direction of his home.

* * *

It didn't take him more then an hour to locate the Hibiki residence.

As he opened to the door, he was immediately tackled by a slobbering, black and white bundle of fur. Kuroshiro had learned to manage on her own over the years, but being a dog, she still enjoyed the company of her masters. Barking excitedly, she jumped up and down, trying to lick Ryoga's face. "Down, girl! Down!" he laughed. "I'm glad to see you too!"

Once the dog had settled down somewhat, Ryoga entered the house. It seemed deserted, but you never knew. "Mom? Dad? Anyone home?" he shouted.

When there was no answer, he sighed and scratched Kuroshiro behind the ear. "Figures. Looks like it's just you and me again."

As usual, homecoming proved to be a bittersweet experience. To the Hibiki, home tended to be a place where you remembered your family rather then meeting them.

By the looks of things, his parents had been gone for quite a while. Most of the food in the refrigerator was past the expiration date. Fortunately, Ryoga still had some of his own canned rations, so at least he wouldn't starve. According to a note on the fridge, his father was traveling in work and would be gone for quite a while. Another note informed him that his mother was running an errand. In other words, things were just as they'd always been.

Ryoga suddenly realized that he now probably had the best sense of direction in the family, and he wished his parents were around so he could tell them about it. Then a thought occurred to him. Going through the drawer of unsorted everyday items most homes have, he grabbed a broad black marker and wrote a message in big letters on a piece of paper. Then he attached the note to the refrigerator door with one of the magnets:

**IVE FIGURED IT OUT! **

**DONT THINK OF WERE YOUR GOING JUST **

**GO THERE WITHOUT THINKING ABOUT IT!!!**

**-RYOGA**

It wasn't a very detailed description of the method, but he hoped his parents would understand anyway. He certainly wouldn't mind meeting them again. It felt like years since last time. In fact, it probably had been.

He prepared his food in silence and ate it with Kuroshiro as his only company. Then he walked up the stairs to room, lied down on his bed and stared into the ceiling.

Outside the window, the sun was slowly setting by the horizon. The silence brought with it an uncomfortable feeling. Ryoga didn't immediately recognize it, but then he knew what it was. Loneliness.

He thought it strange. Why would being lonely suddenly bother him now? Loneliness was the Hibiki way of life. It was _his _way of life. When you never know where you are, or where you will be next, other people tend to be nothing more then faces and names passing you by.

_No,_ he thought. _Not all of them. _

Ranma had always been there, after all. And Akane too, of course. Then there was Ukyo and the amazons and all the others. But most of all Ranma: he was the one who tied that random group of misfits together, be it out of love or hate or competition.

Ryoga now knew that the rivalry was over. Oh, Ranma would recover from his injuries, Ryoga didn't doubt that. And there would still be fights and arguments and attempts to surpass each other, because he was still Ryoga and Ranma was still Ranma. But it would never be the way it was before. Ryoga didn't mind, though. It was better this way.

A calm serenity overcame him, dulling the feeling of loneliness somewhat. He was so relaxed that it took a few minutes for him to realize that something had changed.

The soft ki. He could reach it!

He sat up, careful not to loose the fleeting feeling, and held his hand up. As he focused the flow, the soft green glow immediately appeared.

_Strange, _he thought. He hadn't been thinking of Akari. And why would the thought of Ranma, of all people, suddenly yield the same results? On a whim, he cut the flow and tried again, this time thinking about Akane. Same results; the flow of soothing energy appeared almost instantly.

Ryoga was puzzled. He certainly didn't love Ranma, and he still hadn't confessed his feelings to Akane. Then again, they _had _started to sort things out. _At least I don't have to lie to her... anymore..._

He blinked. _Wait a minute! Maybe that's it?_

The more he thought about it the more it made sense. It hadn't been because of love after all. Akari has simply been the only stable point in his life, the only person he knew he could trust. His love for Akane had been marred by lies, shame and insecurity. His friendship with Ranma had been corrupted by their rivalry, or rather his own bitterness and jealousy. As for all the others, he simply hadn't had the courage to let them into his life.

"I'm so pathetic," he muttered as the ki disapperated, leaving the room a little darker and colder. "No wonder I became depressed."

But then his heart grew determined. _Well, it'll stop right now! _No more years wasted on loneliness and lies. Akane had spoken about a new chance, and Ryoga knew now that she had been right. He had to take charge of his life again, and live for something greater then the mindless pursuit of strength and the dream of a love that would never be real. He'd make real friends, starting with Ranma and Akane, and work his way on from there. After all, what did he have to loose?

He stood up, smiling and raising his fist as if posing a challenge to the world itself. "Just wait!" he said. "Tomorrow I shall be reborn: a new life for a new Hibiki Ryoga!"

As he spoke, the aura of soft ki lit up around his body. It flared brightly, bathing the room in its emerald light. Ryoga threw his head back and laughed out of sheer joy.

He felt great. It was going to be wonderful.

* * *

Author's Note: So tired… need sleep…

So, yeah, I'm sort of unfocused right now, so apologies if anything slipped under my radar.

Nothing much to say about this, save that I learned some new fun medical terms.


	4. Akari's Pride and Gathering of Youkai

**Intermission: Akari's Pride and the Gathering of Youkai.**

* * *

Unryu Akari sipped her coffy and smiled. It was a beautiful morning, the pigs of the Unryu farm had all been fed, and now she was taking a moment to relax while reading a letter from her wayward boyfriend. Ryoga had not returned from his training trip to the mountains, and even though Akari was used to him getting lost on a constant basis, she was still relieved to hear from him again.

_Dear Akari_

_Sorry I'm gone for so long but something came up and I ended up in Furinkan (again). Ranma is at the hospital and I want too stay until he gets better. I hope you understand._

The letter was pretty well written, considering how seldom Ryoga actually managed to attend school. Akari sighed with a melancholy smile on her lips. Trust Ryoga to get lost and somehow end up in the middle of Furinkan-related affairs again. But at least he was looking after a friend, good-hearted boy that he was.

_Alot has happened lately and I need to set some things strait, so I'll be living with the Tendos for a while. Hey guess what? Akane knows about p-chan but she didnt kill me!!!_

This caused her to raise an eyebrow. She had never considered his curse to be a warrant for homicide, quite the contrary. But then again, the Tendos were odd people. Friendly, but odd.

_Anyway, I hope to see you again soon. I know it sounds strange but youve been a great help to me during this time and I'm very greatfull for that. Thank you!_

_Love, Ryoga._

"That's so sweet," Akari said to herself, gently folding the letter and returning it to its envelope. "Be back soon, Ryoga-chan."

She finished her coffy and then left the kitchen with a spring in her steps, her enthusiasm getting the better of her once again. What Ryoga didn't know was that something amazing had happened recently on the farm as well.

She entered the barn, feeling almost giddy. A special pen had been set aside for a mother sow and her young. Leaning over them, Akari smiled brightly at one piglet in particular.

Fubuki was the new pride of the Unryu farm. The piglet had been born in a litter of seven, about a week after Ryoga left. He was slightly larger then his brothers and sisters, but he was also special due to being born albino. White as snow and with eyes red as rubies, he appeared to Akari to be the most beautiful piglet she had ever seen. No such pig had ever been born on the farm before.

"You're going to be something really special," she said and reached down to fondly scratch his ears. "I just know it."

Fubuki simply closed his eyes and yawned. If he understood any of her words, at least he did not show it.

* * *

Far in the northern mountains, the climate cared little for the passing of seasons. A thin blanket of snow covered the landscape, as white as the pure innocence itself. But in one particular clearing, the once white snow was now stained red with blood.

The warriors had been highly trained; hunters since generations, forged in a unifying hate of their ancestral enemy. They had fought bravely, without remorse or fear of death. And in the end, death had found them all.

The clearing was riddled with corpses. Broken weapons lay besides the broken bodies of their owners. Only a single figure still stood up, observing the carnage with a pleased smirk, like an artist examining his own work and finding it pleasing.

The man was unusually tall and muscular, but his physique only implied a fraction of the inhuman strength he had been granted simply by being born. His skin was dark, contrasting the snowy surroundings, and his short hair was blue like the deep ocean. He was dressed in a dark blue, sleeveless gi and black sashinuki-style hakama, with a crimson sash around his waist. Almost as a mockery, he had taken to wear a rosary around his neck, and spiked bracers decorated his broad wrists. Despite the snow, his feet were bare.

He let his blood-red eyes gaze upon his handiwork and scoffed. The battle had not lasted long enough to satisfy him. They didn't make youkai-hunters the way they used to, after all. And besides, humans were so fragile.

"Enjoying yourself, Kobaruto?"

The giant looked up, surprised that someone had managed to evade his sharp senses, his body tensing up for the possibility of another battle.

The one who had spoken stood on the branch of a nearby tree, as still as if he was a part of it. It was a man with fair skin, hair the same color as the sky on a clear day and eyes the color of blue ice. He was young, or at least looked young, and would probably be considered handsome by most standards. He was dressed in white samurai garb with blue patters resembling stylized wind and lightning. Blue body-armor covered his chest, probably intended more as decoration then protection. Had he worn more modern attire had could likely have passed for human, if it hadn't been for the pointed ears and the sharp fangs that sometimes glimpsed as he spoke.

"Well, well," Kobaruto said and grinned. "The famous Thunder Prince Shian. I haven't seen your face around in ages. And what does a big shot like you want with a lowly beast like me?" He cracked his knuckles. "You know I'm always up for a good fight, if that's your business."

"Don't be silly," the other youkai said. "I don't have time to indulge for your childish pastimes. And neither do you, by the way. Surely you haven't forgotten the last time we met?"

"Huh? The last time?" Kobaruto's eyes narrowed. "Wait, you don't mean…"

"Yes." A faint smile appeared of Shian's cold features. "It's time. The Master has incarnated in this world once again."

For a moment, Kobaruto simply stared blankly into the air. "You dun say," he whispered.

Then he cast his head back and laughed. "Ha! _Finally!" _He turned to Shian. "Where is he?"

"I haven't found him yet," Shian said. "More importantly, I need your help to summon the others first. Then we can start the search." He raised an eyebrow. "I trust they are all still alive?"

"Oh, they better be, for their own sake," Kobaruto said. His face was one big smile, all fangs and cruelty. "Me, I wouldn't miss this for the world!"

* * *

Author's Note: dramatic music cue _Dun-dun-dun-duunnnn! _oO

Yes, Ryoga's letter is supposed to have spelling errors in it. And I must say, making them deliberately felt pretty strange.

Also, I have no idea if pigs actually yawn. Oh well, lets say albino sumo-pigs can, at least. ;

Sashinuki hakama is the kind of "balloon pants" six-panel hakama with tied hems that were in fashion during the Heian period, 795-1192 AD. Fans of Inuyasha should be familiar with them, as such a garment is a part of his Fire Rat Suit.


	5. Breaking the Cycles, Part 2

**Chapter III: Breaking the Cycles, Part II**

* * *

"_The more things change, the more they remain… insane."_

-Michael Fry and T. Lewis, "Over the Hedge."

* * *

It had started as an ordinary morning, and was steadily progressing into what promised to be an ordinary day. Unfortunately, promises are sometimes broken. 

Cologne, mostly respected elder of the Joketsuzoku amazons, noodle restaurant matron and over-all ancient master of the martial arts, was having a pretty good day until she decided to go through the mail. This only goes to prove that change comes in many guises, even as harmless everyday routines, and that one can't even trust the good days to stay good.

Part of the reason for her good spirits was that Ranma was nearly due to return from his stay at the hospital. Cologne had been surprised to learn that the Hibiki-boy had not only beaten Ranma, but had also managed to injure him gravely in the process.

Ryoga _had_ appeared rather confident when he dropped by to ask for the waterproof soap, but she hadn't seriously thought he'd stand a better chance then any of the other times the two had done battle. But apparently, she had underestimated him. And Cologne had to admit that in terms of raw talent and untapped potential, Ryoga was probably the only one who could even begin to measure up to Ranma.

_In fact, _she thought as she started to sort through the pile of bills and advertisement, _if I had known from the start exactly how stubborn Ranma was going to be about the marriage, I might even have seriously considered trying to convince Shampoo to go for Hibiki instead!_

It was about then she came upon the big yellow envelope.

It didn't surprise her at first. Envelopes just like it would turn up in the mail from time to time. They were large and plain, with an oblong bump that revealed that they contained an actual 3-dimensional object rather then flat documents; more of a package then a letter. The sender was always the same: Nyanchiczu Village, Province of Quinghai, China.

Cologne opened it and pulled out the contents; a paper scroll held in place by a pair of cardboard slips. The moment she laid eyes on the scroll, she knew it was bad news.

These scrolls were occasionally sent to her by the other elders in order to keep her updated on the going-ons of the village. They usually concerned things like marriages, childbirths, funerals, new agricultural treaties with neighboring villages and -of course- who's granddaughter had beaten who's in the annual tournament. These were tidbits that the gossiping old crones back home apparently considered vital enough information to have written down in painstaking detail and mailed over five thousand kilometers to a small noodle shop in Japan. Cologne usually skimmed through them out of politeness only to dispose of them along with the rest of the junk mail and forget about them.

This time, however, the scroll bore the ancient seal of the amazon tribe, signifying that it was an official edict of the Council. This could only mean that the other elders had managed to actually agree on something for once. Cologne considered that alone to be reason enough for worry.

Taking great care, as if she was dealing with a beast that could bite her at any moment, she broke the seal and opened up the scroll. Every character was written with the flawless skill born from a century of practicing calligraphy as well as martial arts. The words were very formal but had a sort of no-nonsense strictness to them as well. Personally written by a fellow elder, no doubt.

As Cologne read it, her eyes turned larger for each line. When she got to the end, she reread the whole thing again, just to make sure she had not misunderstood its meaning or missed some vital detail. But it was all very clear, black on white and to the point.

Shampoo chose this moment to come bouncing down the stairs. "Ayiaaa!" she exclaimed, excited to the point of giddiness. "Airen come back from hospital tomorrow! Shampoo make good ramen for welcome home, yes? But what I wear? Oh, Shampoo can hardly…" She trailed off as she noticed Cologne who was still sitting by the table, staring at the scroll without moving.

"Great-grandmother?" Shampoo said. "Something wrong?"

Cologne looked up from the scroll, and suddenly she felt very, very old. "Xian-Pu," she said quietly. "I'm afraid I have some very bad news."

* * *

Saotome Ranma was not enjoying his stay at the hospital. All things in life are relative and while Ranma was no stranger to excruciating bodily pain, he was ill-equipped to deal with boredom and inactivity. 

It was now nearly a week since his fateful duel with his long time rival, Hibiki Ryoga. One incredibly dull, seemingly endless week of doing absolutely nothing but lying down or sitting around while waiting for his body to mend. Ranma had been brought up in the firm belief that nothing helped the body regain and maintain its health and youthful strength like a good old-fashion workout. Therefore it annoyed him greatly that the doctors so vehemently had forbidden him to pursue any kind of training at all. Apparently, they were concerned that it would cause his heart to stop beating, or something like that. This had confirmed Ranma's already growing suspicion that common sense was not a requirement for practicing medicine.

At least he had managed to convince them to take him off those damned painkillers. Not only had they merely replaced the pain with an unpleasant feeling of nausea, but they had also messed up his head to the point where he sometimes had no idea whether he was awake or dreaming. Ranma had a deep mistrust for narcotic substances and preferred a bit of honest pain any day.

Ranma now found himself confined to his bed after Dr Hazama had sworn to have him cuffed and chained to it if he was found running about again. Ranma had been badly tempted to find out if the good doctor would actually go through with this threat, but it was already getting late and besides, it would soon be over anyway.

"Dammit, where's that room again?" a familiar voice said, right outside the door.

Ranma blinked. _You're joking!_

Sure enough, the door opened and a bandana-clad head peeked inside. "Um, hey."

Ranma lifted his hand in a greeting gesture. "Hey."

"Can I come in?" Ryoga asked.

"Sure, though visiting hours are sort of over," Ranma informed him. "How did you get in here, anyway?"

"I'm not sure of that myself," Ryoga admitted. He stepped inside and closed the door behind him "And keep it down, will you? It took a while to find you, and I don't want to be thrown out now."

This was actually Ryoga's third visit to the hospital, if you included the day of the actual incident. The second one had been two days ago, but at that time Ranma had still been on medication and hadn't been able to communicate well. However, he'd managed to understand that Ryoga was staying at his family's house and that he and Akane had apparently worked out the P-Chan thing. This last revelation had left Ranma a bit disappointed; somehow he had always expected to be in the middle of things by the time Ryoga's secret finally came out.

Ryoga sat down next to the bed, unsure of what to say. "So… Looks like you're doing better."

"I feel allot better," Ranma replied, and that same old cocky grin returned. "You know me, won't stay down for long, heh."

"I hear you'll get to go home tomorrow," Ryoga said.

Ranma nodded. "Yeah, and about damn time if you ask me." He rolled his eyes. "I mean, it's been a whole week already."

"You know, most people with your injuries would have to stay allot longer then a week," Ryoga pointed out.

"Well, I'm not most people," Ranma said. "Far as I can tell I'm tip-top, but the quacks around here say I'll still need to take it easy."

"I think Akane agrees with them, actually," Ryoga said. "Last time I met her, she said something about 'making sure that obsessive baka gets his rest' She was holding her mallet at the time, I might add."

Ranma snorted, but a smile still played on his lips. "Sounds like she'd fit right in with this bunch."

"Oh?" Ryoga arched an eyebrow. "Threatening the patients with violence doesn't sound very doctor-like."

"You obviously don't know Dr Hazama very well."

There was a brief silence, and thoughtful look appeared on Ryoga's face. "Hey, Ranma…" he started, but then hesitated.

"What?" Ranma asked.

Ryoga shook his head. "It's nothing."

"Oh, come on! Out with it."

"Well," Ryoga said, scratching his head. "Do you... ever wonder what our lives would have been like if we'd been just normal kids?"

Ranma chuckled. "You mean, growing up as friends? Going to the same school?"

"Visiting each other's houses, watching TV together…" Ryoga carried on.

"…playing video-games, training at the same dojo…"

"…swapping manga, checking out cute girls…"

Ranma started laughing, despite the stabbing pain this brought to his chest.

"What's so funny?" Ryoga asked.

"I think we just described Hiroshi and Daisuke," Ranma said. "But you're right, in a way I guess it would have been sort of nice to be just a normal kid. But look at the bright side; instead we turned out two of the most badass martial artists of our generation."

"There's a certain charm to that as well," Ryoga admitted.

Still laughing, Ranma touched his chest and winced. "Ouch."

Ryoga frowned. "You okay?"

"Yeah, I'm alright," Ranma said. "I shouldn't have laughed so hard. Stings a bit, that's all. It's nothing." He chuckled. "You really did a number on me this time, didn't you?"

Feeling his bad conscience returning, Ryoga hung his head. "Sorry."

Ranma raised an eyebrow. "You're serious, aren't you? Jeez, I was just kidding! No big deal."

"But _it_ is a big deal!" Ryoga exclaimed. "I almost killed you, Ranma. How… how can you possibly be okay with that?"

Ranma shrugged. He tried to appear casual, but he was clearly feeling embarrassed. "Hey, I've had close calls before. And I survived, didn't I? Besides," he said and grinned. "I'm totally going to make you pay when we have our rematch."

Ryoga's frown deepened. "Yeah, about that…"

"I've got a new technique too, you know!" Ranma carried on, ignoring him completely. "Only, it's not really finished yet. I'm still working out the kinks. But just wait, it's gonna be awesome!"

He almost seemed… nervous, Ryoga realized. _There's something about all this he's not telling me. _Still, Ranma's surprisingly optimistic attitude did help calm Ryoga's anxiety. He sighed and somehow managed to smile. "That sounds great."

"Darn straight," Ranma said. Then he coughed and put a hand to his chest, drawing a raspy breath.

"Does it still hurt?" Ryoga asked.

"A little," Ranma admitted. "I told you, it's nothing."

"Here, let me try something," Ryoga said. He raised his hands and held them over Ranma's chest. "Try to relax."

Ranma gave him an odd look, but nodded.

Ryoga closed his eyes and focused. It was so easy now; he didn't even need to focus on an image. The feeling of peace and tranquility was always there, deep in the core of his being. Maybe it had always been there; he'd just been too blind to see it. He felt the energy flow through him and placed his hands on Ranma's chest, allowing it flow into his body and telling it to heal. He felt Ranma's muscles tense up, only to relax when the soft ki eased his pain, regenerating cells and removing scarred or broken tissue.

By now Ryoga's entire body was glowing in a dim green aura. He opened his eyes, and nearly gasped in surprise at what he saw.

There was a girl standing on the other side of the bed.

She was unfamiliar to him, though she did look allot like Ranma's female form. She had the same eyes, on a similar face. But this girl was taller and perhaps less voluptuous, though the later was hard to tell under the flowing, gown-like Chinese garment she wore. Her hair, though the same shade of red as Ranma's, hung all the way down to her waist. What really caught Ryoga's attention, however, was the fact that he could still see the wall behind her. The girl was transparent.

She smiled at him, put a finger over her lips and winked.

"What are you staring at?" Ranma asked.

Ryoga blinked, shook his head and let go of the ki flow. When he looked up again, the girl was gone.

"Um, nothing," he lied, without really knowing why. "Nothing at all. How are you feeling?"

"I… feel great," Ranma said. "I have no idea how you did that, but it really helped."

"Good," Ryoga said in a slightly distant voice. He _had_ seen her, he was sure of that. Maybe the hospital was haunted? A shiver went down his spine, but he tried not to show it. _Well, whatever she was, at least she didn't seem dangerous. _He decided not to tell Ranma about it. No need to worry him, after all

Ranma drew a deep breath, as if to test out his lungs. "No, seriously, what was that? A new ki technique?"

"Well, something like that," Ryoga said. "It's a bit different from what we usually do, though."

"I'd say!" Ranma gave Ryoga a curious look. "Seems pretty useful. I don't suppose you could teach me how to…"

"No," Ryoga said, firmly. Seeing Ranma's disappointed scowl, he sighed. "Don't get me wrong, Ranma. It's not that I'm greedy and selfish. It's just that…"

"...It has something to do with _that_ technique," Ranma said. "Doesn't it?"

Ryoga nodded. "I think I know you pretty well by now, Ranma, and you could never resist a challenge. You've already seen the San Karyuu Kyodai once. If I were to teach you how to use ki to heal, it would only be a matter of time before you figured out how to duplicate it." He shook his head, his features turning grim. "This technique isn't like the others. It's a blessing, but it's also a curse. I… I guess I'm saying I want to spare you that burden."

Ranma was quiet for a moment, but then he shrugged. "Fair enough, I won't ask you again."

Ryoga relaxed somewhat. "Thanks, Ranma."

"Mind you, I can't promise I won't try to figure it out on my own," Ranma added.

For once, Ryoga allowed himself a cocky grin. "Yeah, good luck with that." He stood up and walked over to the window. "I'll be going now. You try to get some rest for tomorrow. I healed some of your remaining injuries, but your own body will still have to do most of the work."

"No worries, then," Ranma said. "And Ryoga? …Thanks."

Ryoga opened the window and, jumping out, shot Ranma a sincere smile. "Don't mention it."

* * *

Through the combined effect of Ryoga's healing abilities, his own regenerative powers and a good night sleep, Ranma woke up the following morning feeling like a new man. The ache in his chest had been reduced to a barely noticeable discomfort whenever he spoke. Nothing that couldn't be ignored with a bit of determination, and Ranma was used to ignoring discomfort. As far as he was concerned, he was already fully recovered. 

Since it was Saturday, the entire Tendo family was able to accompany Genma and Nodoka to pick him up. They were all smiles, and Akane even went as far as hugging him in front of everyone. While this caused him a considerable degree of embarrassment, he was also mildly surprised to find just how happy it made him.

Before they left, Ranma shook Dr Hazama's hand. "Thanks for everything, Doc."

"It was my pleasure," Hazama said with a warm smile. "Just don't go breaking yourself again with training, now. You may be a living medical wonder, Saotome Ranma, but we don't want to tempt fate, do we?"

Despite his words, Ranma felt confident he could have made it back home on his own just by leaping across the rooftops. Instead, he was more or less forced into a taxi along with his mother and father. He didn't really mind this, though.

As they drove off, leaving the hospital behind, Ranma thought that perhaps now things would return to normal. Little did he know that the days of change were already upon them all.

Life would never be the same again. After all, what kind of life would that be?

* * *

It was later the same day that Kasumi brought him the letter. 

They had just had dinner, and to celebrate Ranma's homecoming the eldest Tendo daughter had pulled all the stops and prepared a feast fit for royalty. Since Ranma had eaten only meager amounts of hospital food the last few days, this had seemed to him as an almost heavenly event. After the meal, he had retreated to the living room to watch TV with Akane, feeling full and safe in the illusion that nothing could go wrong on this day. They had only been sitting there for a few minutes, however, when Kasumi entered the room with the letter in her hand.

"I almost forgot," she said and handed it to him. "Your friend with the glasses came by this morning and asked me to give you this when you came home."

"Mousse, huh?" Ranma said. He quickly opened the envelope and read the message. It was pretty short:

_Ranma, we have private matters of great importance to discuss. Come to the Nekohanten and come alone._

_-Ko-Lon_

Ranma frowned. Private matters of great importance? With the amazons, that generally meant his supposed marriage to Shampoo. Though, he couldn't recall them ever sending a formal invitation to discuss it before. Normally, they were people who preferred actions to words.

"What is it?" Akane asked. Ranma handed her the letter and she quickly eyed through it. She looked up. "You're not actually going there, are you?"

Ranma shrugged. "Why not?"

"Why not?" Akane said. "Did Ryoga hurt your brain as well? Do I have to remind you of all the times these people have tried to brainwash you or trick you into going to China with them? You just came out of the hospital and you're out of shape. They're probably planning to take advantage of that!"

"Don't you think you're jumping to conclusions, now?" Ranma said. "You know they're not bad people. Not _really,_ anyway." He could tell that Akane was about to object this point and quickly carried on: "And, well, the old lady has been cool to me before. Hell, I still owe her one for the Hiryuu Shoten Ha. I don't know what this is all about, but she seems to actually want to talk to me this time. So I figure I should at least go there and hear her out."

Akane sighed. "I guess you're right," she said, but didn't seem entirely convinced.

"Look, I'll be really careful," Ranma said. "Okay?"

"Okay," Akane said. Then she looked up at him with pleading eyes. "And Ranma… please promise you'll try not to get into any fights."

"Well, that's easier said then done," Ranma said and suddenly felt warmer. Did she really have to look at him like that? "I mean, I won't start anything if they won't, but you never know, right? Besides, I can handle myself just fine."

"Don't say that," she said. "Ranma, I know how strong you are, but… I-I just don't want to see you hurt again."

_She's actually pretty cute,_ Ranma thought and blushed slightly. He shrugged and rolled his eyes, in a vain attempt to hide his embarrassment. "Fine, fine. I promise. Happy now?"

Akane relaxed and smiled at him. "Thank you, Ranma."

* * *

Despite feeling perfectly healthy -or healthy enough, anyway- Ranma honored his promise to Akane by heeding the doctor's orders, trotting along the street in an even pace rather then running on fences or jumping the rooftops. While he did realize that playing it safe was the smart thing to do in his situation, his body still itched for some real action. _Man, I never knew being gravely wounded would suck_ this_ much._ He almost wished that the amazons would try to start some sort of trouble, just so he'd have an excuse to cut loose a bit. Almost. 

When he finally arrived at the Nekohanten, he noticed that the place was closed. He wondered why. It was late in the afternoon, but still a few hours until their regular closing time. He felt on the door and found that it was not locked. He opened it and stepped inside, with a growing feeling that something was amiss. The sight that met him did not help much.

The tables of the Chinese-themed restaurant had all been moved aside, save for three. They stood side by side in the middle of the room, in a sort of crescent. Cologne was seated by the middle one, flanked by Shampoo and Mousse on the left and right side, respectively. All three of them had serious, stoic expressions on their faces. To Ranma, it felt like standing before an improvised courtroom.

"Welcome, Ranma," Cologne said. "I'm glad you could make it."

"I'm here all alone, just like you asked," Ranma replied. He now noticed that the amazon elder had a scroll of some sort lying in front of her on the table. "So why don't you tell me what this is all about, Cologne?"

"I suppose we might as well skip the pleasantries and cut to the chase," Cologne said, and something that looked like disappointment momentarily glimpsed beneath the stern facade. "Saotome Ranma, as a Nyanchiczu elder it is my duty to inform you that, in the light of recent events, your marriage to my great-granddaughter Shampoo has been officially dissolved."

Ranma blinked. He didn't believe his ears. "What? Wait, you mean I'm not married to Shampoo anymore?"

"That is exactly what I mean."

"No more son-in-law? No more schemes to lure me to China?"

"Precisely," Cologne said. "All your legal ties to our tribe have been cut."

"Just like that?" Ranma asked and frowned. "I mean, not that I'm complaining or anything, but you're just giving up after all this time?"

Cologne sighed and held the scroll up. "The other elders of the village have looked into your case and unanimously decided to declare you _Dao-Wu._"

"_Dao-Wu_?" Ranma repeated, one eyebrow raised.

Cologne nodded. "It means that you are an exception to the law. You see, my boy, there is such a thing as being too ambitious. In the old times, it was not entirely unheard of for an amazon to be defeated by the occasional dragon in human guise or similar powerful entity. The _Dao-Wu-_clause was created to ensure the safety of the village in such situations." She smiled sadly. "Apparently, your many trips to our homeland have made you something of a celebrity among martial artists there. Between the incident at Jusendo, my reports of your progress and the fact that you have resisted us for two years now, the other elders have come to the conclusion that trying to enforce the law any further simply wouldn't be worth the trouble. And, quite frankly, I'm finding it hard to disagree."

"Wow, this is a little much to take in at once," Ranma said. He glanced at Shampoo, who was sitting quietly with her face turned down. "Hey, what about her?"

"Shampoo…" Cologne hesitated. "The law says that a Nyanchiczu-warrior should not strive to involve herself with a _Dao-Wu, _lest she be punished by banishment."

"Banishment? So if she… You mean you'll just kick her out?" Ranma said, scowling at Cologne. "Hey, you can't just…"

"Is okay."

Everyone looked at Shampoo, who turned her head up to face Ranma. "Aire… _Ranma _no need to defend Shampoo. Law is law. Ranma n-no longer Shampoo's Airen." Suddenly her lip was quivering and her eyes were brimming with tears. She quickly stood up and ran out of the room. _"Bie-le!"_

"Shampoo!" Ranma tried to run after her, but Cologne quickly jumped in his way, cutting him off.

"Please leave," she said. "Try to understand, Ranma. We'll be leaving for China shortly. Your presence will only make it harder for her."

Ranma wanted to protest, but realized that she was right. This didn't concern him, not anymore. He nodded slowly and turned to leave. "Right, have it your way. You guys have a nice trip home."

On his way out, he closed the door a little harder then necessary.

"So this is it, then?" Mousse asked darkly. "We just pack up and leave?"

"You should have no objections against that," Cologne said. "We go home and forget about Furinkan. Everything will be as it was before."

"Somehow I doubt that," Mousse said.

Cologne shrugged. "In any case, Ranma is no longer our concern."

"And what about Shampoo?"

"You won't have any greater chance of marrying her, if that's what you mean," said the elder. "As for her feelings for Ranma… She'll be heartbroken, but she'll get over him, eventually."

"Eventually…" Mousse mumbled.

"Come now," Cologne said. "We should start preparing right away, delaying will only make things worse."

Suddenly, Mousse clenched his fist in fury. "Dammit!" he growled and headed for the door.

Cologne's eyes narrowed. "Where are you going?"

"I have something personal to take care of," Mousse snarled before leaving the Nekohanten, slamming the door behind him.

"Oh dear," Cologne sighed. It didn't exactly take Charlie Chan to figure out what this personal "something" was. For a moment, Cologne considered stopping him but realized that it wouldn't solve anything. It wasn't her mess to clean up.

Left alone in the Nekohanten, the amazon matriarch once again looked down on the scroll in front of her. So, the boy had proved to be a lost cause. Cologne wasn't exactly surprised, but she couldn't help feeling rather disappointed at the same time. What now? Back to China? Cologne freely admitted that there had been times when she had wanted more then anything to return to the village, with or without Ranma, but still…

Cologne shook her head. The problem was that she _liked _Nerima. She liked Furinkan, she liked her little restaurant, she liked the crazy adventures and random insanity and she liked being around these young and impulsive people all day. Just being close to Ranma made her feel several decades younger. In contrast, life back in the village seemed dull and uneventful.

_And living in Japan has been a good influence on Xian-Pu as well, _she mused. During this time, Shampoo had grown from a naive, spoiled brat to a confident and independent… spoiled brat. Still, it was improvement.

Cologne sighed and hopped up the stairs to Shampoo's room. She could hear the muffled sound of crying even before she knocked on the door. _"Xian-Pu, can I come in?" _she asked in Chinese.

There was a brief pause, then: _"Yes, great-grandmother."_

Cologne carefully opened the door and entered. She found Shampoo sitting in her bed, hugging her knees. Her cheeks were still wet.

"_What do you want?"_ she asked. _"You must think I am pretty weak now, crying like a child over some stupid male who doesn't even love me."_

"_Today, I believe you are entitled to some weakness," _Cologne said softly. _"Are you crying because he is _Dao-Wu _or because he does not love you?"_

"_I don't know,"_ Shampoo said. _"I just… I don't know."_

Cologne shook her head, feeling genuinely sorry for the girl.

"_We shall soon leave for China,"_ she said. Shampoo didn't reply. Cologne sighed. _"Xian-Pu, I know it hurts right now, but believe me when I tell you that it is all for the best."_

Shampoo turned her face away, but Cologne could tell that she was once again close to tears._ "I would like to be alone now."_

Cologne nodded. _"Just one more thing. Mu-Tsu left right after Ranma did. He looked very upset. I just thought you should know that."_

"_Oh no,"_ Shampoo stood up. _"That idiot, I should have guessed he'd do something stupid! I better go after him."_

Cologne didn't try to stop her great-grandchild and she opened the window and jumped out. She merely chuckled as Shampoo disappeared out of view.

"Young and impulsive people," she said to no herself. "You just have to love them."

* * *

_Stupid amazons and their stupid laws,_ Ranma thought as he hurried to get back to the house. _Would it kill them to actually make sense for once?_

In truth, Ranma wasn't sure how to feel. He didn't love Shampoo, at least not the way she wanted him to. But he didn't want her to be unhappy, either.

Just like with Ryoga, Ranma had come to think of Shampoo as One of the Gang, a somewhat-friend who made life more interesting. Ranma was the first person to admit Shampoo wasn't exactly a saint; she could be sneaky, manipulative and violent if you stood in her way, but he was okay with that because, well, she simply wouldn't be _Shampoo _otherwise.

Picking up his pace as he headed down the street, he tried to think of a way to make things the way they should be. But unfortunately, there seemed to be no options this time. The amazons were lost to him now. Ranma sighed…

…and just barely stepped out of the way as Mousse's foot was imbedded in the sidewalk.

"Ranma! I'm going to _kill _you!" he snarled.

"Hey! What's the deal?" Ranma jumped out of the way as a couple of deadly blades nearly shredded his face. "I'm out of Shampoo's life! I thought you'd be happy!"

"Shut up!" Mousse screamed. "Just shut the _hell_ up! Do you even realize what you've done to her? Oh, she wouldn't even _look _at me but for _you _she'd do anything! But _no,_ she wasn't good enough for you, was she?"

Ranma avoided several rapidly thrown knives and dodged a chained mace. A spear grazed his shoulder and the brief pain sparked his own anger. "Look who's talking! You're the one who couldn't take no for an answer, you twisted stalker!"

"_Shut up!" _Mousse was truly enraged now, and Ranma realized that the young amazon actually wanted him dead. "I know she will never love me, that she will always treat me like dirt! Everything I yearned for, she gave to you! And you have the _gall _to refuse her, as if her love and devotion means nothing at all? You don't _deserve _her, Ranma! You broke her heart, took her love and threw it in her face! Do you have any idea what dishonor you've caused her? What ridicule she'll suffer when returning unmarried to the village after two years? _Damn you, Saotome!"_

He lunged again and Ranma dodged, once again only narrowly avoiding the attack. Mousse's rage made him unfocussed but also faster and more unpredictable. To make matters worse, Ranma's body was not yet completely healed, slowing him down. He realized that he couldn't keep fighting defensively, and adopted a more aggressive stance. "You know what? I've had enough of this. Come and get it!"

"That's right," Mousse said, stepping forward as blades appeared out of the sleeves on his robes, like metallic wings. "Time to end this…"

"STOP!" 

Ranma and Mousse both froze and turned their heads to stare at Shampoo, who seemed to have appeared out of nowhere. She glared at them. "Both of you, stop."

"Shampoo…" Mousse's weapons vanished to wherever he stored them, and for a moment he seemed to have forgotten all about Ranma. But then his face became hard as steel once more. "You shouldn't be here, Shampoo. Go back."

Slowly, Shampoo walked up to him with grim determination in her eyes. "No more, Mousse. You stop right now."

"I can't!" Mousse growled. "Not after what he's done to you! I have to…"

Without warning, Shampoo slapped him. Mousse fell silent, and the expression of rage on his face was replaced by one of shock and terror as he stared at her.

"_Stop fooling yourself!" _Shampoo yelled in her native tongue. _"This is not about Ranma and me, this is about you! It's always about _you_!"_

Ranma took a step back. He didn't understand much of the Chinese, but he realized that this was something very personal between the two amazons. He had never seen Shampoo this way, and Mousse was acting strange as well.

"_Even now," _Shampoo said, only barely keeping her outrage back. _"Even now it's all about you. It always has been, ever since we were children. Mu-Tsu's feelings are always so important! Mu-Tsu must always get his way, no matter what it takes!" _Her features turned from anger to bitterness and she clenched her fist. _"I should have put a stop to this years ago."_

Somehow, Mousse finally managed to speak. _"Then… Then why didn't you?" _

_"You used to be my friend!"_ Shampoo said with pain in her voice. _"I value that, Mu-Tsu, more then you think. But I can't love you. That's the truth, no matter how many battles you fight, no matter how long you follow me around." _

"_I know,"_ Mousse said quietly, looking away.

"_Do you? You claim to love me, Mu-Tsu," _Shampoo said. _"But you do not respect me."_

There was no answer, but Mousse's face seemed more strained now.

"_If you really do love me," _Shampoo continued_", then you should respect my feelings. Please, let's go back to the way things were! Try to just be my friend! I can't love you, Mu-Tsu, but please don't make me hate you as well!"_

He jerked visibly and looked up. _"I-I never meant…"_

Shampoo shook her head. _"No, you never do, do you? But this has got to end, Mu-Tsu! One way or another." _

Mousse looked into her eyes and realised that she was serious. The recent events seemed to have driven the issue to its limits, and now her risked loosing her entirely. He wrestled his emotions for a moment, but then he drew a deep breath. "Very well," he said in Japanese. "From now on, I will do my best to… just be your friend. You have my word."

"Thank you," Shampoo said.

Mousse turned to look at Ranma, his face like stone. "However, that doesn't make Saotome any less my enemy." Without warning he leapt at Ranma, in one last vicious attack. _"Die, Ranma!" _he cried out in defiance.

Ranma's foot struck him in the face. The power behind the kick pushed him around his own point of balance, causing him to spin in mid-air. When he landed hard on his back, he was already unconscious.

Walking over to them, Shampoo looked down at him and sighed. "Stupid Mousse. Never know when to quit."

"It's not like him to go at me with his bare hands," Ranma pointed out. "He _wanted _to get knocked out."

Shampoo nodded. "I know."

There was an awkward silence as they both stood there in the dimly lit street, looking down on the unconscious young man.

"So, um, now what?" Ranma said, realizing as he said it how lame it sounded.

"Shampoo no know…" She put her face in her hands and shook her head. "Shampoo no know what to do! No can stay, no want to go back to China!" 

Ranma sighed and sheepishly scratched his head. "Well… So what if you stay then? What's the worst that could happen?"

"They banish me," Shampoo whispered.

"Is that so bad?" Ranma asked. "I mean, you've already been living abroad for a long time, after all."

Shampoo shook her head. "You no understand. Is not matter of where Shampoo live. If banished, I no be _amazon _anymore!"

"Oh," Ranma said, and suddenly understood. He knew how important pride could be when that was all one had. "But there has to be something we can…"

_"Why you care!" _

Ranma shyed away for the sudden outburst. Shampoo bit her lips and looked down on her clenched fists. Tears welled up in her eyes again. "Shampoo just silly girl who follow you around, right? So why you care?"

"Shampoo… I…" Ranma began, without knowing how to continue.

Shampoo turned from him away. "Shampoo saw what happened at Jusendo. No is stupid, know you love Tendo Akane."

For a brief heartbeat, Ranma was about to deny this. Denial was always so easy, after all. But instead he just sighed and looked away. "I'm sorry."

"Don't be," Shampoo said. "Shampoo big hypocrite. Ranma choose other girl but me not respect that, just hide behind law. Is just as bad as Mousse."

"Well," Ranma glanced at the unconscious young man on the sidewalk. "Maybe not _quite _that bad."

A shadow of a sad smile appeared on Shampoo's face. She took a few steps towards Ranma, bringing her close to him.

"Ranma," she whispered, looking into his eyes. She now seemed so very different from the brash and shameless amazon he had come to know. "Please… say you no love Shampoo."

Ranma sighed. This was the hardest thing he had ever had to do. Once -a lifetime ago it seemed- he had been unable to do it. But much had happened since then. "Shampoo… I'm sorry. I-I wish I could make you happy. Wish I could go on without hurting you. But that'd be a lie. Mousse was right about that much, you deserve better. I… I can't…"

He could find no more words, but it was enough. Tears were brimming in her eyes, and she put her finger to her mouth. "Shhh. Shampoo understand." Then she threw her arms around him in a last desperate hug. Not her usual loving glomp, but rather the solemn embrace of a painful farewell. Ranma felt a kiss, light as a feather, on his cheek.

And then she left. Ranma stood still, watching her bound across the rooftops and disappear into the evening.

Mousse chose this moment to wake up. Managing to get himself in an upright sitting position, he groaned and gently rubbed his cheek. "Damn, that hurt."

"Well, I try," Ranma said.

"Are you still here?" Mousse asked. "I thought you'd have enough brains to leave while I was knocked out."

Ranma rolled his eyes. "Come on, Mousse. Do you really want to kill me?"

"Oh yes, I _definitely_ really want to kill you!" Mousse replied. Then he groaned. "But I guess I won't. That would just make Shampoo more unhappy."

Ranma nodded. That was a start, at least. "So, now what?" he asked.

"Now?" Mousse frowned. "Now, I'm going to get drunk. _Really _drunk. And after that…" he shook his head. "I don't know. I'll cross that bridge when I get to it."

He got to his feet, wobbled slightly and started to walk back towards the Nekohanten. "So long, Saotome. But never long enough! Ahaha!"

As Ranma watched him leave, he drew a hand through his hair and tried to make sense of the events of the day. "Man, this has been a crazy week."

"Indeed," a familiar voice said. "You know what they say; when it rains it pours."

"Cologne," Ranma said, hardly even surprised. He looked up to see the very same amazon elder, perched on a nearby rooftop. "Eavesdropping, are we?"

Cologne jumped from the roof, landing perfectly on her cane in front of him with an audible _tokk._ "Eavesdropping? My boy, I don't know what you're talking about," she said in blatantly feigned ignorance. "I was merely looking for my great-granddaughter and I was just about to ask if you have seen her."

"Well, Shampoo…" Ranma frowned. "I think Shampoo just ran away, actually."

"Oh dear," Cologne said. "Well, then it seems you will be stuck with me for a while longer, Ranma-kun."

Ranma frowned. "Huh?"

"Well, I can't return to China as long as my young charge is lost somewhere in Japan, now can I?" Cologne explained. "That would be very irresponsible of me. Why, I'd loose face to other elders and we can't have that! So I suppose I'll have to stay here until she returns. Oh, and I guess I'll need a temporary waitress and delivery-girl, if you're interested in the job."

Ranma's eyes narrowed and he shot the matriarch a suspicious look. "Cologne… You didn't _plan _this, did you?"

"Oh, of course not!" Cologne smiled. "Contrary to what you may believe, Ranma, I do not particularly enjoy scheming. _Improvising _is so much more fun, after all."

"You think Shampoo'll be alright?" Ranma asked.

"She's a strong and resourceful girl and it's not the first time she' on her own, as you may recall," Cologne said. "She has allot to think about right now, but I'm confident that she'll take good care of herself until she feels she is ready to return."

"Yeah, I guess she does," Ranma said. "And what about Mousse? I think he's in a pretty bad shape."

"Oh, on the contrary," Cologne said. "I'd say he's made allot of progress tonight."

"If you say so," Ranma said and turned to leave.

"Before you go, I have one last question," Cologne said. Ranma stopped and turned his head. She gave him a serious look. "Did Shampoo ever stand a chance?"

Ranma hesitated for a moment before answering. "Yeah. Yeah, I think she did. In the beginning, anyway."

"Then what did she do wrong?"

Ranma shrugged. "I dunno. I guess… I guess she just scared me a bit."

Cologne nodded. "I see." Seemingly satisfied with this, she started hopping back towards the restaurant. "Do consider my offer," she called over her shoulder. "Same wage as last time."

Ranma shook his head, but a chuckle escaped his smiling lips. He wasn't sure how all this had happened or how it would end, but he guessed it was a good thing.

When he returned home, Akane was waiting for him. "Ranma, you're back!" she said, coming to meet him as he stepped through the door. "What did they want?"

Ranma had to smile. "Oh, you are _not _going to believe this!"

Suddenly Akane stopped dead in her tracks. The smile on her lips vanished and her eyes narrowed. "What is _that?_" she demanded, pointing at his shoulder.

Ranma looked down, realizing she meant the small cut where Mousse's spear had scored a hit. Only, now that he looked at it, he realized that it wasn't so small after all, and the shallow wound had caused blood to stain his shirt. "Oh that? Mousse got a lucky hit in. It's no big deal."

"You promised me you wouldn't get into any fights!"

"H-Hey, he attacked me! What was I supposed to do about it?"

But it was too late. Akane had already sniffed and turned on her heels, storming off with a look of deep scorn on her face. "Baka! And here I went and worried about you and everything!" She vanished from view and Ranma heard the door to her room slamming shut.

"I suppose I should have seen that one coming," he muttered to himself. _Oh well. One problem at a time, Ranma. One problem at a time._

* * *

Back at the restaurant, Cologne found that Mousse was missing as well. Most likely, he had taken his saving and gone to find a place that sold hard liquor. She realized they'd have to keep the place closed for at least another day, but she knew they could afford it. 

The scroll from the Council of Elders was still on the table where she had left it. She smiled at the small victory she had scored on this day, even though she knew she'd have to report back and tell them all about the new complications. This affair would probably raise all kinds of hell back home, but it couldn't be helped.

And besides –Ancestors forgive her– that place needed a good hellraising anyway.

* * *

**Author's Note:** For the record, I think the opening quote for this chapter sums up the entire fic. 

One thing I've noticed about Ranma½ is that the characters are _very_ prone to get hung up on things -usually Ranma or involving Ranma- and this is the prime source of most of the many conflicts in the series. They simply can't let go. For examples, Ryoga can't free himself from his desire to defeat Ranma or his obsession over Akane, Mousse can't get over Shampoo, and Kuno… well, you get the picture. I suppose it was a simple way for Takahashi to maintain the status quo of a popular long-running series, and in a sense I understand her. After all, she seems to genuinely enjoy churning these things out, plus she probably likes money as much as most people.

Personally, though, I've never liked status quos. When it comes right down to it, fiction is about life and life is about change. In this story I wanted to let the characters experience real change for once, not just by learning new techniques or fighting new people but by breaking away from the cycles that dominate their lives. (Thus the titles for these two chapters.) I realize I may be threading the fine line of OOC:ness with this, but with characters like these it's hard not to.

The idea is that the changes occurring in these chapters will cause additional changes in later ones. But at the same time, I want to try to keep the tone as close to the familiar wacky Ranma½ one as I can. It'll be tricky, but no one ever said writing fanfiction was easy.

Anyway, enough angst for now. Let's move on to more interesting matters, like violence! XD 


	6. The Barbarian Cometh!

**Chapter IV: The Barbarian Cometh!**

* * *

"_Friends may come and go, but enemies accumulate."_

-Thomas Jones

* * *

"Have you seen Ryoga around lately?" Akane asked. 

"Huh?" Ranma looked up.

He had been walking in deep thoughts when her question woke him out of them. They were on their way to school, for once not in a hurry. Ranma's body had now healed to the point where he could even take up training again without having to worry about relapse, but with the events of the last days, the current status of his health was the last thing on Ranma's mind.

"I asked you if you've seen Ryoga," Akane repeated. "I don't think he's been around since before you got back from the hospital."

"Oh, he's probably just lost again," Ranma told her. Even though the perpetually lost boy's sense of direction had seen dramatic improvement lately, he was still a Hibiki after all. "To be honest, I'm more worried about Shampoo. She's been gone for more then a day now."

"I'm sure she's fine," Akane said and tried her best not to sound completely indifferent. Even though the news of the amazons' change of heart had come as a pleasant surprise for her, she still didn't trust them enough to believe that Shampoo was out of their hair just yet. What worried her the most, though, was that the affair seemed to have gotten Ranma genuinely concerned. It all felt a bit too convenient. "She's a big girl who can take care of herself. You of all people should know that."

Ranma caught the edge in her voice and considered snapping off an equally sharp retort. _Oh, so it's okay to worry about Ryoga but not Shampoo? What the heck is she implying, anyway?_

Instead he started walking faster, keeping his eyes on the sidewalk in front of him. "Yeah, I suppose," he mumbled sourly.

Akane glanced at him and sighed. "Look, Ranma, I'm…"

There was a splash, a few stray drops of cold water on her cheek, and suddenly she was walking next to a petite, redheaded young woman rather then the tall, dark-haired youth she had just been talking to.

The old water-throwing ladle woman had struck again!

It was funny thing about Ranma; he could move his body and react to threats alike with a speed that most normal people would consider to be way outside the realm of human ability. He could read the body-language of master swordsmen and seasoned martial arts experts and avoid their attacks with contemptuous ease. His sixth sense was so refined that he could even dodge attacks in his sleep. Yet somehow, he was utterly incapable of learning to expect the old woman who had managed to it her habit to wash her porch whenever he happened to pass it by.

"Dammit!" the now wet and female Ranma muttered. "There goes my record."

Akane put a hand to her mouth to hide a smile. "Your record?"

"This is the first time I've transformed in over a week," Ranma explained.

"Really?" Akane said and giggled. "Come to think of it, I did notice you've seemed unusually manly lately."

Ranma shot her a look that was half annoyed, half embarrassed. He hadn't told her about it, but lately his female form had been a source of discomfort, though not because of his physical loss of masculinity. In fact, it was really quite the opposite.

Sometime after the wedding, Ranma had found that he was more comfortable with his female half then… well, then he was comfortable with, frankly. That is not to say he hadn't already grown accustomed to his constant shift in genders a long time ago. But even at those times he had used the curse to his advantage -be it to manipulate Kuno, fool his enemies or just get free ice-cream- it had always been safe in the knowledge that his real body was just a kettle of warm water away. That he was really just putting up an act he'd learned by heart.

Lately, however, this had changed. Perhaps because of what had happened at Jusenkyo, or maybe it was the fact that he no longer had to hide his curse from his mother. But whatever the reason, the fact of the matter was that the act wasn't just an act anymore. Suddenly his female body felt normal, for the lack of better words, and the giggles were genuine rather then faked. Without noticing, Ranma had started to identify himself with the girl as much as the boy. This realization seemed to him almost as scary as the threat of seppuku.

Akane noticed the serious look on the other girl's face, and assumed her own words were to blame. Her smile softened. "Sorry. I was just kidding, you know."

"Yeah, I know," Ranma said, and carefully returned the smile. They had now arrived to the school, and she tried to clear her head of her ruminations. Thinking too much about it wouldn't help.

As they entered the school grounds, a familiar figure in black and blue kendo garb came rushing across the yard to greet them.

"Oh joyous day!" Kuno Tatewaki called out, holding his arms out as he ran. "Tendo Akane and the Pig-Tailed Girl! Come to my embrace, my beloved angels!"

Ranma still smiled as she introduced her foot to Kuno's face. It felt good that some things still hadn't changed.

* * *

The young warrior was walking, carrying his home on his back. He'd been walking a long way, for a long time. 

Sometimes it felt like _too _long; when the road was dusty and the skies were grey. But then a refreshing gale would ruffle his emerald locks and the clouds would open up to let the warming sunlight through, and he'd find the strength to carry on. The winds, the sun, all the small blessings in life would lighten each step on his way.

And then, of course, there was the hatred. Always the hatred.

It burned in his heart like a furnace, fueling his tired muscles with fire and turning his will into iron. When even winds and sunlight wasn't enough, his hate would always keep him going, no matter how far.

A sign by the roadside welcomed him to Furinkan. "Finally!" he said, as a grim smile appeared on his lips. If his information was correct, this was the very hometown of the man he had traveled so long in search of. Now he had only to find this man and destroy him.

He picked a rock off the ground, felt its weight, tossed it up and caught it again as it fell. Then his fingers closed around it, and suddenly his hand was lit up by a crimson light; flames red as blood danced around it, licking his arm without burning it. There was a crushing, grinding sound.

Then the light died away and when he opened his hand, only dust remained of the rock.

As he entered the city, he threw his head back and laughed. At long last, his journey was nearly at an end.

For the young warrior was on a quest. A quest for vengeance.

* * *

A few hours later, Ranma and Akane left Furinkan High after an eventful day at school. Ranma was female again and walked slightly hunched, holding an arm over her chest to cover up the gaping hole in her shirt. Akane walked next to her, seething with irritation. 

"Honestly," she muttered. "It's your first day at school since you were injured. You'd think Kuno would be civil enough to at least take it a bit easier on you."

"He's getting better," Ranma said. "Damn, I can't keep loosing shirts like this. There should be a law against bringing real swords to school."

Akane sweatdropped. "I think there already is."

"Oh." Ranma mentally filed this information under Good To Know. "Well, at least Nabiki and Kuno got an A on their history assignment. I just wish I hadn't been a part of it."

In truth, it worried Ranma somewhat that Kuno had actually managed to score a hit. The blade had only cut the loose cloth of his shirt, but it still showed that his infirmity had left him more out of shape then he had initially thought. It had been something of a blessing in disguise when the water pipe broke only a second later; splashing water all over him. Ranma had transformed and Kuno had caught an eyeful of her left breast as it popped right out of the new hole in her shirt. That, and the resulting nosebleed, had distracted Kuno long enough for Ranma to knock him out. Still, the ordeal had left her feeling just a bit more humiliated then she had come to expect.

"I swear Takamura enjoys seeing Kuno freak out like that," Akane said, smiling slightly as her irritation died away. As usual, she couldn't stay angry for long.

Ranma sighed and nodded. "Do you remember when we used to have _sane _teachers?"

"No."

"Me neither."

Akane's smile turned into laughter, and Ranma found a smile of her own. _She's in a good mood. Maybe now's my chance to ask her?_

She put on what she hoped was a casual expression. "Um, Akane," she said. "Would you like to... I mean, if you wouldn't mind..."

Akane shot her a curious look. "Wouldn't I mind what?"

"Well, I was thinking," Ranma said, fidgeting at bit, "that we could go out this afternoon and, you know, maybe grab something to eat?"

Akane's eyes grew larger and she looked at her exasperated companion in surprise. _It couldn't be! ...Could it? _"Saotome Ranma, are you asking me out on a _date_?"

"Weeell," Ranma said, drawing the words out as much as possible, as if she dreaded the sentence that would follow. "Not exactly. I mean, I wouldn't really call it a... See, what I was thinking..."

Akane's heart sank. It wasn't just the usual embarrassment; she recognized these signs. This was Ranma's try-not-to-hurt-Akane's-feeling-by-letting-her-down-gently behavior. She should have known he would never do anything that romantic. He could be so _stupid _sometimes.

"You want us to go to Ucchan's, don't you?" she said in an even voice. "Maybe bring Ryoga along if we can find him, and all just hang out like _friends_? Is that is?"

Ranma cleared her throat and desperately tried to find something interesting to look at. "Actually," she mumbled. "I was thinking of dropping by the Nekohanten."

Akane snapped her head around to glare at the redhead, not even trying to hide her feeling this time. Ranma winced before she could stop herself. _Oh damn, I blew it!_

Pulling her hand though her hair, Akane groaned. "You're _still _thinking about Shampoo?"

"Well, I just thought maybe Cologne have heard from her by now," Ranma said and shrugged. "Look, sorry I brought it up. You don't have to come along if you don't want to."

Akane sighed. _Well, I guess it was kind of sweet of him to ask. _"No, I'll come with you."

Ranma's face brightened. "Really?"

"On one condition." Akane shot her a sharp glance. "That we go there right away. We go home and get changed –that goes double for you- and then we go talk to Cologne. Otherwise you'll just spend the rest of the day thinking about it."

"Thanks, Akane," Ranma beamed.

Akane was still mildly disappointed, but the look of immense relief on her fiancé's face took the edge of it, and she had to admit she was curious herself. _Anyway,_ she thought, _maybe_ _this way I can hear about that Dao-Wu thing from Cologne in person._

* * *

When they got back home, Ranma made for the furo while Akane went to her room, where she took off her school uniform and put on a casual sweater and skirt instead. When she went to check on Ranma, the sound of the showers running informed her that he had taken the opportunity to wash himself off. This wasn't surprising; between fighting Kuno, the following ruckus and being hosed with cold water for the second time that day, he likely welcomed a chance to refresh himself. 

Leaving him be, she encountered Nabiki by the open front door. She was leasing against the jamb with puzzled look on her face.

"Hey, sis," she said. "What's tall, green-haired and interested in dojos?"

"I didn't know you liked riddles, Nabiki," Akane said.

Nabiki merely lifted her finger to point. Akane leaned out of the doorway to look, and found that they had an unexpected visitor. A young man in Chinese clothes was standing in front of their dojo, looking at the building in the relaxed, aloof manner of someone who's simply passing time while waiting for something or someone.

"Who's he?" Akane asked.

Nabiki shrugged. "Beats me. He was standing there when I came home from school just now, and he didn't say a word to me."

"So why didn't you ask him?"

"Are you kidding? He looks like one of the maniacs who follow Ranma around all the time. I don't want to get kidnapped or anything." Suddenly, she smiled brightly at Akane. "Well, why don't you go talk to him? Find out what he wants."

"Thanks allot." Akane rolled her eyes. She had a feeling she would regret this, but never the less approached the stranger.

He was a tall young man with spiky green hair and equally green eyes, about her age or a bit older, and slightly taller then Ranma. His distinct Chinese looks made her think of Mousse, and his slender yet muscular frame revealed that he was obviously in great physical shape. He was dressed in baggy white kung-fu pants with a black sash and a sleeveless white Chinese shirt with red dragon-patterns. He also wore ornamented leather bracers around his wrists. The worn rucksack he carried on his back suggested to her that he was a traveler who just arrived to town.

"Um, hello there?" she said carefully as she neared him.

"Hm?" The young man glanced at her with a look of brief annoyance –as if _she _was the one who had just barged into _his _home, rather then the other way around. "I have been told that the great Saotome Ranma stays at this residence," he said, turning to look at the dojo again. "I would like very much to meet him."

Akane sighed inwardly. _Looks like another martial artist. The poor guy's probably here to challenge Ranma over something._ She knew exactly how _this_ would end and it probably wouldn't make anyone very happy, save possibly for Ranma, and that was only if he got a new technique out of it by the end of the day. _Maybe I should try to talk him out of it? _

"Um, sure, but can I ask why?" she asked, trying to sound casual.

"That is not of your business, little girl," he replied, in a tone that immediately made Akane want beat on him over the head with her mallet.

_Right,_ she thought grimly. _Suit yourself, then. _"One moment, please." She walked over to the front door and stuck her head in. "Ranma! There's some guy here to see you!"

Ranma had just finished putting a new shirt on and was practically in the hallway when she called. He stepped outside and gave the stranger a puzzled look. "Me? What does he want?"

Akane shrugged. "Same as usual, I guess."

"So, you are the much-debated Saotome Ranma?" the young man asked with a smirk, walking up to them. "I have wished to meet you for a long time now."

Ranma sighed. "Great, _another _one! What did I do this time? Insult you as a kid? Accidentally destroy your life sometime in the past? Or maybe my old man signed my kidneys over to your family in exchange for food and made a run for it?"

"What?" the stranger asked. This smirk was gone, and he now looked completely bewildered. "What are you talking about?"

"The reason you want to fight me, of course," Ranma said.

"Fight you? I do not wish to fight you, Saotome Ranma!"

"You _don't?_"Ranma said, a smile lighting up his face. "That's great! Oh, wait… You're not here to kidnap Akane, are you?"

"Of course not!" the Chinese youngling exclaimed. "I just want…" 

"Hold that thought!" Ranma quickly ran inside the house. After a short moment, he returned with a glass of water which he then emptied over the stranger's head.

"Was that really necessary?" the now damp but still very male and human stranger asked.

"Just wanted to test something," Ranma shrugged. "Now, what did say you wanted from me?"

"I just want your autograph!" the young man said and produced a pen and a notepad. 

"My what?"Ranma asked.

"His _what?"_ Akane asked. 

"Your autograph," the man said. "You are something of an underground martial arts-celebrity in China now, in case you didn't know."

"Oh, _that," _Ranma said, suddenly grinning. "Well, if it would make you happy, why not?" He took the pen and notepad and scribbled his signature. "Who should I make it out for?"

"Wei-Xi," the youth beamed. "Wei-Xi the Barbarian."

Ranma paused, slowly looking up. Behind him, Akane was struggling not to explode in a fit of laugher. "Wait, your name is _Whiskey the Barbarian?"_

"No, not Whiskey, _Wei-Xi_,"the other boy corrected.

Ranma frowned, shrugged and wrote "Whiskey" anyway.

"Wait, you came all the way from China just to ask for that?" Akane asked.

"Don't be preposterous," Whiskey said. "It was just a stop along the way. If you really must know, I'm searching for someone." He clenched his fist and suddenly his mind seemed to be in another time a place. "I've been searching without rest for so long, but whenever he seems to be within my grasp he slips away again. He never stops in one place for long and it seems impossible to predict where he will be next!"

"Always on the move and you never know where he might turn up?" Ranma chuckled. "Kinda sounds like Ryoga, doesn't it?"

His word snapped Whiskey back to reality. He grabbed Ranma by the shoulder and stared him in the eyes. "Ryoga? _Hibiki_ Ryoga!? You _know_ him!?"

"Geez, I was just making a joke," Ranma said. "It's actually Ryoga you're looking for?"

Akane, who had been slightly faster at connecting the dots, smiled and sweatdropped. "Somehow, I can't say I'm surprised."

"Where is he?" Whiskey demanded. "Please, you must tell me where I can find him!"

"Hey, take it easy," Ranma said. "Look, to be honest we're not sure where he is ourselves. We haven't seen him lately."

Whiskey's expression went from overflowing joy to complete devastation in a heartbeat. Feeling but a slight sting of sorry for him, Akane quickly added: "Well, he's been living in his parents' house this last week. Maybe he's still there?"

"Hey, that's right!" Ranma said. He gave Whiskey a reassuring pat on the shoulder. "Tell you what, I'll take you there. He's bound to turn up sooner or later, anyway."

"You... You really mean that?" Whiskey exclaimed. He seemed genuinely moved by the offer. "They were truly right to call you an honorable man, Saotome Ranma!"

Ranma scratched his head and smiled with his entire face. "Heh, yeah well, it's the least I can do, right?"

"_Ahem_. Aren't you forgetting something now, Ranma?" Akane said dryly. "We were supposed to go to the Nekohanten and talk to Cologne, remember?" In all honesty, nothing prevented them from doing that after showing Whiskey the way –it would not be a very long detour and they had time to spare– but Akane was displeased with Whiskey's lacking manners and the way he kept catering to Ranma's overblown ego wasn't helping.

"Oh, right!" Ranma hit his palm. "Didn't think of that." He turned to Whiskey: "Well, why don't you come along, then? Chow's great, and the old lady might even give you a discount since you're from the old country and all."

Whiskey considered this. "Well, come to think of it, some food _would_ be nice. I suppose Hibiki can wait for a while longer." He glanced at Ranma. "You are _sure_ he's still in town?"

"Pretty sure," Ranma said. It was probably true, so he figured it wasn't really a lie.

"Then it's decided!" Whiskey said. "Lead the way!"

* * *

Whiskey walked in silence, with the determined look of a man who had seen every street imaginable and was now only concerned with what lay at the end of them. Occasionally, he'd mumble under his breath and chuckle. 

Trying to strike up a conversation, Akane asked: "So, how do you know Ryoga?"

"Nosy, aren't we?" Whiskey muttered. "We met two years ago in China. You might say he made something of an… _impression_ on me." A cold smirk appeared on his lips. "Oh yes, I can't wait to get to meet him again. Ku-ku-ku-ku…"

It was a low, sinister laugh. The kind that is usually only uttered by super-villains in anime shows. This was the first time Akane heard if from a real person. "I see," she said, slowly. "Ranma, can I have a word with you in private for a moment?"

Grabbing Ranma by the arm, she pulled him a few steps aside. Whiskey -who seemed relived she didn't want to talk to him anymore- willingly fell behind.

"Ranma, I don't like this guy," Akane whispered.

"He _is _a bit weird," Ranma admitted, "but, you know, so was half of everyone we've gotten to know these past years."

"I mean, I don't trust him," Akane hissed. "I think he's up to no good!"

They both glanced at Whiskey. He now had a slightly feverish look in his eyes and manic grin on his lips. He chuckled maliciously, holding his clenched fists up before him, as if he was crushing something invisible with his bare hands.

"Well, maybe he's just happy about getting to meet an old friend again?" Ranma suggested.

"Oh, you have to be…!" Akane drew a deep breath. "You know what? Forget it. We'll find out once we get a hold of Ryoga."

They didn't have to wait long, for when they arrived at the Nekohanten only a minute later, a familiar cry resounded through the air: _"Dammit! Where the hell is that restaurant?"_

"Speak of the devil," Ranma said.

Ryoga stood in the street with his back to the aforementioned building, with a frantic look on his face. When he noticed Ranma and Akane, however, he seemed relived. "Oh, hey you guys."

"Yo," Ranma greeted. "Lost again, huh? You had a relapse?"

Embarrassed, Ryoga scratched his head. "I guess I got carried away. I don't suppose you can point me towards the Nekohanten?"

Ranma raised his finger and pointed at the large and obvious sign above their heads. Ryoga trailed it with his eyes, and then facepalmed. "You know, I really should have seen that coming."

Meanwhile, Akane noticed that Whiskey was staring intensely at Ryoga. His body was tense like a spring and he was shaking slightly. "Um, Ranma…" she said.

"Oh, right!" Ranma said. "Ryoga, there's a Chinese guy here named Whiskey…"

"Wei-Xi!"

"…whatever. Anyway, he says he's an old friend of yours."

Ryoga frowned. "Friend? Strange, I don't recall ever..."

"Hibiki Ryoga!" Whiskey screamed and quickly scuffled past Ranma. "If have found you at last! Prepare to _die!"_

"_What?"_ Ryoga shouted, his eyes widening.

Akane crossed her arms over he chest and put her chin up. "Ha!"

"Ops," Ranma said.

Unfazed by Ryoga's bafflement, Whiskey continued: "I've finally found you after all this time! I doubt you can even imagine the hardships I've suffered chasing after you, but now I will finally have my due!" He pointed straight at Ryoga. "Hibiki! For the grave dishonor I have suffered because of you, I shall _destroy you _on this day!"

Ryoga stared at him. Then he blinked. Then he cocked his head. "What the hell are you talking about?" he finally said. "Who are you, anyway?"

Whiskey facefaulted. "Don't play dumb! I am Wei-Xi the Barbarian! You ruined my life two years ago! Surely you must remember me!"

Ryoga seemed to ponder this, but shook his head. "Nope, doesn't ring a bell. Sorry."

On the sidelines, Ranma and Akane stared at the scene in fascination.

"Wow," Akane said.

Ranma nodded. "So this is what it looks like from the outside."

"Enough of your lies!" Whiskey shouted and suddenly his body was lit up by a menacing red aura. He leapt into the air. "Have at thee, Hibiki Ryoga!"

Ryoga jumped out of the way in the last moment as his assailant brought his foot down in an axe-kick, and the pavement shattered under Whiskey's attack. Without skipping a beat he slashed his hand at Ryoga like a knife. Ryoga dodged and saw a small object fly passed his face. One of the buttons had been cut from his shirt.

Ranma frowned. "What the hell…?"

"What is it?" Akane asked.

"His ki…" Ranma said. _This feeling… Why is it so familiar?_

Whiskey slowly rose from the small crater he had made in the sidewalk. Ryoga regarded him with a raised eyebrow. "Interesting," he said and took a stance. "Very well, then. Let's get this over with."

"That's the spirit!" Whiskey said and lunged.

Ryoga was just about to strike, when suddenly he hesitated. He was prepared for the attack, but not the pressure of the aura Whiskey was manifesting. It was unlike anything he had experienced before; it washed over him like waves of hot water, primal and overwhelming. For a brief moment, he felt like a small rabbit within the gaze of a great, pouncing predator. He froze, realizing within his next heartbeat that this had been a dire mistake. _Oh no!_

Then, before anyone had the time to react, there was a flash of green and white. Suddenly Cologne was standing between the two of them. Whiskey stopped dead in his tracks and the crimson radiance vanished. He looked down to find that the elder was holding her staff pointed at him, with the tip only an inch from his chest.

"That's enough, both of you," she said, and looked up at Whiskey. "That's an impressive aura you have there, boy. Who are you, causing a ruckus outside of my restaurant?"

Whiskey glared at her. "I am Wei-Xi, Warrior Champion of the Xulongjie-tribe," he proclaimed proudly.

Cologne seemed mildly surprised by this reply. "Ah, the barbarians. I haven't heard anything from you in decades. Quite frankly, I had my doubts your tribe still existed."

"Amazons," Whiskey sniffed. "Figures I'd run into you people in Japan, of all places. I presume you are that Cologne of the Nyanchiczu?"

"_Elder _Cologne," she corrected him. "Our lack of contact over the years is no excuse for neglecting the proper etiquette."

Ranma noticed that Mousse had also arrived to see what was going on. He leaned towards the nearsighted amazon and asked quietly: "Hey, Mousse, what's going on here?"

"Diplomacy," Mousse whispered in reply. "Quiet now."

"My apologies, _Elder _Cologne," Whiskey said in a cold tone of voice. "As for the ruckus, that is non of your concern. This is between me and Hibiki Ryoga."

"It _is_ my concern if it scares away my customers," Cologne said. "And if you want to fight him, you will have to do it elsewhere. I will not allow the Nekohanten to be damaged."

For a moment, it seemed as if Whiskey was going to defy Cologne. But then he shrugged, glared at her for a moment, and turned to Ryoga. "Very well. Hibiki Ryoga, I challenge you for a duel. Name the time and place."

"Okay then," Ryoga said. "Meet me at the Furinkan High sporting field, tomorrow at noon."

"I will be there," Whiskey growled. "You can be sure of that!" 

As he left, he gave Ranma a curt nodd. "Excuse me, Saotome Ranma, but I belive I just lost my appetite." And without further ado, he leaped up into the air and vanished among the rooftops.

"What a weird guy," Ranma said.

Akane sniffed. "Well, I for one don't like him at all."

Ryoga scratched his head, suddenly looking thoughtful. "Damn," he muttered. "I forgot to ask why he wants to fight me."

Ranma and Akane fell over. "You mean you really _don't know_?" Ranma asked.

"Of course not! I've never even seen him before!" Ryoga said. "Though, come to think of it, he did look oddly familiar."

"Well, you must have done _something _to him," Ranma reasoned.

"Why don't you all come in for some ramen?" Cologne suggested with a chuckle. She apparently found the situation to be very amusing. "Maybe we can shed some light on this subject."

* * *

A few minutes later, they were all settled around a table within the restaurant, each with a steaming bowl or ramen before them. 

"So, what's the deal with these barbarians?" Ranma asked, chewing down a mouthful. "You guys seem to know quite allot about them."

"Oh, we go back a _long _way," Cologne said. "The barbarians and the amazons have had shaky relations since ages past. Some even say we might have been the same people once upon a time, since many of our customs are alike. But in spite of this we never got along."

"The barbarians have a strongly patriarchal society," Mousse explained. "By tradition, they see women as inferior to men."

"You mean they're all chauvinist pigs?" Akane said, not even trying to masque her disdain.

"That's a rather simplified way of looking at it," Cologne said. "But yes, if you will. As you can understand, this was a source of many conflicts when our two people interacted."

"On the other hand, it also resulted in a whole lot of marriages," Mousse added.

"Yes, the barbarians always were a people of strong and fearless warriors," Cologne said. "Unfortunately, they were badly decimated by a disaster long ago. We offered our help to the survivors but they were much too proud to accept the aid of women, and hid away in the mountains instead."

"That's fine and all," Ranma interrupted. "But it doesn't explain why this guy wants to kill Ryoga."

"That I do not know," Cologne said and looked at the eternally lost boy. "Are you sure you don't know him?"

"Well, like I said, he does look familiar," Ryoga frowned. "I think I might have asked him for directions once."

"You don't remember?" Ranma said.

"Have you _any idea _how many people I have asked for directions while running after you, Ranma?" Ryoga asked dryly. "I kinda lost count after the first two days."

"He has a point there," Akane said, thoughtfully chewing her ramen. "Well, I suppose we'll just have to ask him about it tomorrow. Who knows, maybe it's just a big misunder…"

Before she had finished the sentence, the door to the Nekohanten was slammed open and Shampoo barged in.

She was dressed in a pair of ill-fitting jeans and a red plaid shirt over an ugly yellow t-shirt with the text **'Guns don't kill people, _I_ kill people!'** printed in English at the front. Her hair was a mess and her face was dirty but she still beamed a bright smile at baffled party by the table.

"Nihao, everyone!" she said. "Shampoo back again!"

* * *

Author's note: The name Wei-Xi is actually pronounced sort of like "Way-Shi." Whiskey, however, speaks dialect and pronounces it more like "Wee-shwi." To a Japanese, this turns into "wisuki." That is, Whiskey. 


	7. Shampoo's Walkabout

**Chapter V: Shampoo's Walkabout**

* * *

"_This is as true in everyday life as in battle: we are given one life and the decision is ours whether to wait for circumstances to make up our mind, or whether to act, and in acting, to live."_

-General Omar Bradley

* * *

For a moment everyone just stared at Shampoo. Her sudden return and bizarre appearance had somehow left them all utterly speechless.

Mousse was the first to react. "Shampoo, my love!" he cried and threw himself at her.

Shampoo placed her foot in his face before he could embrace her. "I thought we agree you stop doing that, Mousse."

"Sorry, Shampoo," Mousse said and retreated. "Force of habit."

Cologne hopped up to her. "Well, well. I admit I didn't expect your return so soon," she said with a warm smile, "but I'm glad you're back again, Shampoo."

"Welcome back!" Ranma said, smiling broadly. Akane settled for a half-hearted wave of the hand. Ryoga –who had merely noted her absence without knowing the reason– gave her a nod and an uncertain smile.

"Shampoo very happy to be back," Shampoo said, and for a moment her eyes seemed moist. But then she sobered up and turned to Cologne with a serious look on her face. "Great-grandmother, Shampoo do much thinking, and... Shampoo no go back to China with you."

"Oh?" Cologne did her best to look properly shocked and surprised. "I see."

Ranma stood up, suddenly looking concerned. "Shampoo, are you sure?" he asked. "I know what's at stake here, and I don't want you to do something you might regret for my sake."

Shampoo gave him a wry smile. "You no flatter yourself, Ranma. Shampoo no do this for your sake, but for my own."

Ranma's eyebrows shot up as thus comment left him dumbfounded. Akane thought that this new Shampoo might not be so bad after all.

"Your time away seems to have changed you," Cologne commented. "You've grown."

"Your fashion sense seems to have taken a beating, though," Akane added.

"Is great and dramatic tale of valiant struggle, hardship and loss of clothing," Shampoo said and took a dramatic pose. "You all sit back, and I tell you the story."

"You don't have to if you don't want..." Akane began but found herself hushed by Mousse, Ranma and even Ryoga. She frowned but fell silent.

"Story start on fateful day when Shampoo run away," Shampoo said. "That evening..."

* * *

…A lone Chinese girl walked down the desolate streets of Nerima. Her shoulders slumped and her heart ached for each beat, but the gentle wind had long since dried the tears from her cheeks.

How had it come to this? Only a day ago, Shampoo had known what to expect from her life. It hadn't been perfect, but it had been what she'd chosen. But now her life in Nerima had been shattered and swept away by an edict, by simple words on a piece of paper. _Conceited old hags,_ she thought bitterly. _They had no right…_

Running away had been a mistake, she now realized. Running was for cowards, not warriors. _Great-grandmother must be so disappointed with me now. _What did she hope to gain from this, anyway? Sooner or later she would have to go back and face the music, and when she did…

Shampoo recalled life in the village only vaguely, like a picture painted in broad strokes. Training to be a strong fighter, training to be a good wife. Allot of good _that _had done her.

Aside from Mousse, she had never made many friends. Most of the other girls feared her, and a few respected her, but she was pretty sure non of them had ever actually liked her. On the other hand, she _had _made a fair deal of enemies; girls with sharp tongues and hearts void of mercy, and she wasn't naive enough to think they would have forgotten –or forgiven- anything since last time.

She felt a cold, hard lump in her stomach. Now those girls would have something to work with, too. Dao-Wu women were largely considered failures. Failures due to circumstance, perhaps, but failures non the less. And from a purely legal viewpoint, she would be considered comparable to a widow. For a teenaged girl in a culture that traditionally frowned upon the concept of remarriage, this could be a problem all of it's own. That is, assuming she would ever even want to marry anyone after Ranma.

Shampoo sighed, so caught up in her heartbreak and misery that she didn't notice…

SPLASH!

…_that infernal water-throwing woman! _

Sitting in a pile of her clothes, Neko-Shampoo glared daggers at the elderly lady and wished that she still had fingers, so that she could show the universe in general what she felt about its sense of timing.

Of course, it wasn't the first time around this had happened. Every single aquamorph in Nerima had been splashed once or twice by that particular woman, it seemed. And she never even appeared to notice it.

This time, however, something highly unusual happened. The lady looked at the wet cat sitting among the Chinese garments and frowned.

"Oh dear," she said, walking up to Shampoo. "I'm terribly sorry, I didn't see you there."

Shampoo blinked. _She actually... noticed?_

The woman bent down picked the dripping girl-turned-cat up. Shampoo struggled a bit –she didn't like it when strangers held her while in this form- but she didn't have the spirit to fight herself out of the old lady's embrace. The entire situation just felt silly.

"Hm," the woman said, looking down and Shampoo's discarded clothes. Then she picked them up as well. "I suppose I should take these along too, don't you think? Wouldn't want them to be ruined or stolen."

A pair of children came by on bikes, a girl and a boy, sibling from the looks of it. They rang their bells and slowed down as they closed in on them. "Hello, Mizukami-obasan!"

"Good afternoon, children," the lady, who was apparently named Mizukami, said pleasantly.

"What a cute kitty!" the boy, who was the younger one, exclaimed.

"Is it you cat, Mizukami-san?" the older girl asked.

Mizukami laughed. "Oh no, dear," she said. "You see, cats don't belong to anyone. They go wherever they want to go."

* * *

Shampoo was carried into a tidy living room and placed on a comfy couch. Mizukami disappeared for a minute and then returned with a towel. She gently rubbed Shampoo's wet fur, somehow managing to get it marginally dryer. "Don't you worry about a thing, dear," she cooed softly and scratched Shampoo behind the ear.

_This is silly,_ Shampoo thought. _I'm a human, a warrior! Not some pet!_

Still, getting scratched behind the ears wasn't really that bad at all. As a matter of fact, it was rather relaxing. Before Shampoo realised it, she had closed her eyes and started to purr.

She must have fallen asleep, because when she opened her eyes again the lady was gone and there was a bowl of milk on the floor next to the couch. She drank half of it, as always amazed at how good ordinary milk tasted when she was a cat.

_It would be so easy,_ she thought hazily, _to stay like this and live with this old lady and just forget…_

But then she shook her head, as if to clear her mind of these thoughts. Running away from her troubles was bad enough; she wasn't about to start running away from herself as well.

The old woman's words from before returned to her. _Cats don't belong to anyone. They go wherever they want to._

She couldn't let them win that easily.

She looked around and to her great relief, one of the windows was ajar. She jumped up to the windowsill and started to pry it open. Again cursing over her lack of fingers, she finally managed to get it open to the point where she could slip through. She jumped out and landed on the ground in old lady Mizukami's backyard.

The first objective would be to find hot water –which, she knew from experience, was allot harder to come by then most people tended to think. Then she'd have to steal –_borrow_, she quickly corrected herself– some new clothes. With these goals in mind, she ran off as the sun set by the horizon.

It would be several hours before she was human and dressed again, and she would not get much sleep that night. Had she known this beforehand, she would probably have stayed with Mizukami 'till morning.

Only about a minute after Shampoo's escape, the old woman returned and found that her guest was gone. She saw the half-opened window and sighed.

"Well," she said and looked down at the plain, folded yakuta and kettle of hot water she had brought along, "I suppose I won't be needing these anymore."

* * *

Higurashi Kagome felt content as she headed home from school. She was experiencing a refreshing break from the normal routine of time travelling and demon fighting that had occupied so much of her time since her fifteenth birthday. Not that this wasn't an important and noble mission, but Kagome still appreciated every occasion to be just a normal teenager. And she didn't miss the company of a certain rude but strangely attractive hanyo at all. No siree.

Okay, maybe just a little. Still, it was nice to spend some time away from mortal danger for a change.

The sound of an overturned trashcan and a cry of pain caught her attention. It had come from a nearby alley. Her curiosity got the better of her, and she snuck over to have a look.

Within the alley, a group of young men had surrounded a girl. The men looked like yakuza, or wannabe-Yakuza, anyway. With their facial scars, tattoos, wildly outdated hairstyles and tasteless outfits, they were almost living clichés. The girl, a teenaged beauty with long purple hair, looked like a housecat surrounded by stray dogs, but despite this she held her head high and seemed angry rather then scared.

Kagome's sense of self-preservation told her to leave before they noticed her as well, but something held her in place: perhaps concern for the other girl's fate, or morbid curiosity. Or maybe the fact that one of the men was clutching his hand in obvious agony, and that Kagome recognized a warrior's stance when she saw it.

The men were nervous and agitated. Curses, threats and vulgar insults echoed against the alley walls. Then, as if on a common signal, they attacked her. Kagome gasped, powerless to do anything to stop them.

As it would turn out, though, this was not necessary. The purple-haired girl moved with a speed and dexterity Kagome had never thought she would see in her own time period. The only other human she had ever met who could fight like that would have had to be Sango. Fists and kicks started flying, and the curses and shouting soon took on a slightly different tone.

To be brief, the delinquents were badly beaten and sent running.

For a moment the girl just stood there, breathing heavily. Then she stumbled slightly and leaned towards a wall for support. All of a sudden, Kagome could move again. "Hey! Are you alright?" she yelled, running over to the girl.

She was perhaps a few years older then Kagome and looked like a foreigner, possibly Chinese. Though she was very good-looking, the dirty face, messy hair and badly picked clothes sort of took the edge of it. She jerked when Kagome neared, prepared to defend herself again, but relaxed when she realized she was only dealing with a schoolgirl this time. "I okay," she muttered.

"Wow, that was amazing!" Kagome said.

The girl managed a weak smile. "Those men were cowards. Needed to let out frustrations anyway." She started to walk away, still with a supporting hand on the wall.

"Hey, hold on," Kagome said. "Look, I know it's non of my business but... do you need any help? You're not hurt, are you?"

"I fine, just tired," the girl replied. There was an audible churning sound from her stomach region. "Oh. And hungry."

Kagome hesitated. She really should be getting home and this stranger wasn't her problem, after all. But then again, she did look really miserable and Kagome felt a sudden urge to help out. Being brought up at a shrine will do that to you.

"Look," she said. "There's a café not far from here. How about we go and get a cup of coffee and something to eat? My treat."

The girl looked surprised, and a bit confused. "You no even know me."

Kagome shrugged. "No, but you look like someone who needs a helping hand. Did you run away from home?"

Shampoo nodded. "Had to get away for thinking... Thank you for offer, but I no want to be trouble."

"It's no trouble," Kagome said. "Honest."

The girl hesitated, but then she nodded. "Okay."

"Great!" Kagome said. The two of them started walking, leaving the alley. "Oh, and I'm Kagome, by the way."

"My name Shampoo," the girl said.

Her accent was definitely Chinese, Kagome decided. "That's an… interesting name," she noted diplomatically. "Say, that was some impressive stuff you did back there. You practice martial arts?"

Shampoo nodded. "Shampoo amazon warrior. Trained since little girl to become strong fighter. Is tradition of my people." Kagome could tell by her voice that this was something Shampoo took great pride in. The amazon glanced at her. "You also train martial arts?"

"Um, not really," Kagome said. "Well, I do a little archery. I haven't done it for very long, but I'm starting to get pretty good with it."

"Archery ancient and noble art," said Shampoo. "Sharpens mind, teaches you focus."

Something about the way she said that made Kagome feel pretty good about herself. She smiled. "Come on, let's get you something edible."

* * *

A few minutes later they were sitting at the café. Shampoo had quickly wolfed down the two sandwiches Kagome had bought for her, too hungry to care for manners. She was now sipping her latte with a slightly distant look on her face.

"So... you like coffee?" Kagome asked. It was a lame question, but she needed to say something to break the ice.

"Is okay," said Shampoo. "Shampoo prefer tea, though."

"Right," Kagome tried to think of something more to talk about. "So, you come from China?"

Shampoo nodded solemnly. "Yes, but Shampoo live in Japan for years now." She stared into her coffee. "Still not learn good Japanese, though. Have bad ear for language, see? It make me sound… stupid."

"Well, what's a few missing pronouns anyway?" Kagome said, in an attempt to cheer the other girl up a bit. "And hey, you speak allot better Japanese then I speak Chinese!"

"Thank you," Shampoo said, smiling ever so slightly. It felt good to have someone to talk to.

"So, why did you run away from home?" Kagome asked, careful not to sound too intrusive. "Family problems?"

"Something like that," Shampoo said. "See, my people have law, very old law of amazon tribe. Basically, if man defeat amazon-girl in combat, they be married."

Kagome blinked. "Eh? You mean the only man you can marry is one who'd want to hurt you?"

"Not quite," Shampoo said. "More like, I _have_ to marry man who _do_ hurt me." She frowned. As she said it out loud, she could hear how bad it sounded.

Kagome stared at her. "That has to be the most stupid law I've ever heard about," she said.

"Is no so stupid," Shampoo said, though she was having her own doubts about that now. "Is ancient tradition, thousands year old."

Kagome humphed. "Well, if it's that old, I say it's time that someone does something about it. So what happened? Did they force you to marry some jerk?"

"Oh, no! Ranma no jerk, he nice guy!" Shampoo said. "Is complicated. _Very _complicated. Shampoo like Ranma, but I no allowed to see him anymore. Is other law, saying Ranma no can be amazon husband."

"What? Why not?" Kagome asked.

"That no matter," Shampoo sighed. "He no love Shampoo back, anyway."

Kagome frowned, trying to make heads and tails of all this. "Gee... That sucks."

"There is more," Shampoo said. "There is other girls who like him, and stupid blind boy who chase Shampoo around, and more stupid boys who only fight all time…"

Kagome couldn't believe her ears. _Yikes, sounds like she has some serious problems! No wonder she ran away!_

Shampoo sighed. "_Point _is, it all over now. Must go back to village in China with great grandmother. Maybe good to leave, nothing here for Shampoo anyway..."

"That can't be right!" Kagome protested. She was beginning to see the pattern now. Going back was a bad thing. "You said you've lived here for years. There's got to be something worth staying for. I mean, don't you have any friends?"

Shampoo shook her head. "Shampoo no have friends in Japan. All Shampoo have is rivals, they no want to be Shampoo's friends."

Kagome frowned slightly. "No offence, Shampoo, but did you ever give them a chance?"

The amazon didn't answer at first. "You think… they want to?" she asked hesitantly.

"I don't know," Kagome answered truthfully. "But I _do _know that friendship can grow in unexpected places." _I learned that from a certain dog-eared boy._

"Friends…" Shampoo said slowly, as if she tasted the word. She looked up. "Shampoo like to have friends now."

"There you go," Kagome smiled. "You'll never know if you don't try."

Shampoo still seemed hesitant, though. "But tradition say…" she began.

"Any tradition that makes people unhappy is a bad tradition," Kagome said firmly. "Look, those silly tribal laws doesn't even apply in China, and they _definitely _don't apply here! You have the right to marry whoever you want to marry, and do whatever you want to do."

Shampoo nodded slowly. Then she took a deep breath and looked up. She seemed to have come to a conclusion, because now she was smiling. "You right, Shampoo no go back to village. Stay and fight!"

"'Atta girl!" Kagome said with a smile of her own.

Shampoo stood up and took Kagome's hands. "Shampoo give great thanks to you, Kagome. You very kind soul, help Shampoo very much."

"You're welcome," Kagome chuckled. "So, are you going back now? To your home, I mean."

Shampoo's smile wavered. "I not sure I ready for facing Ranma and great-grandmother yet... Need to sort out feelings first, then know what to do."

"Hold on a sec!" Kagome retrieved a pencil and a notebook and scribbled down a number. "Look, here's my phone-number. I'm not home very often these days, but you never know. If you ever need to talk to someone again… Well, don't be a stranger, okay?"

Shampoo looked surprised at the paper slip for a moment, but then she smiled. "Okay!"

Once they parted, Kagome walked home with a spring in her steps. It felt great to have been able to help someone out. She only hoped Shampoo would now be able to deal with her troubles.

As for Shampoo, she felt much better after this encounter, and this wasn't only because of the sandwiches and the caffeine. After talking to Kagome things seemed clearer somehow, and she felt stronger. Perhaps even strong enough to follow the new path ahead of her, and face whatever ordeals lay along it.

She straightened her back and started walking. Her path would take her all the way back to Furinkan. And beyond that... who knows?

* * *

"…And so, after many trials and misadventures, Shampoo return with renewed determination!" Shampoo finished between mouthfuls. "Have any more ramen?"

The others shared bewildered looks. Shampoo's "dramatic tale" had been rather random, as she had omitted several parts and tried to tell it while simultaneously eating multiple bowls of noodles. This, along with her speech impediment, had made it a bit hard to follow.

"Well, the important part is that you are back and safe," Mousse said happily.

"So you see, great-grandmother," Shampoo said to Cologne. "Shampoo stay here. Not because of Ranma, but because this place my home now." She bowed her head, with a determined look on her face. "I know you be disappointed and Shampoo sorry, but this my decision."

There was a pressing silence as everyone in the room held their breath, awaiting Cologne's response.

"Well," the amazon elder said, "then at least I won't have to worry about packing."

Everyone fell over. Shampoo looked up in obvious surprise. "You… You no go back to China?"

"Why on Earth would I want to do that?" Cologne laughed. "It certainly doesn't matter to _me _that Ranma is Dao-Wu." She turned to Mousse. "What about you?"

"If Shampoo stays, so do I," Mousse said resolutely. He smiled at her. "She is… my best friend, after all."

Shampoo quickly wiped a tear from he cheek with her sleeve. _"Xixie,"_ she said in a hushed voice. "Both of you."

"Wow," Ranma breathed out with a look of happy astonishment. "It all worked out! Imagine that."

"I wouldn't be so sure," Ryoga said. He turned to Cologne. "The other amazon's won't like this, will they?"

"Oh, let me worry about them," Cologne said. "The worst they can do is summon council and force me to use my veto again." She cackled. "Let's see how _they _like getting scrolls in the mail!"

Akane sensed that they had now reached some sort of conclusion. She stood up. "Well, I'm glad that got sorted out. Thank you for the food, Cologne, but we must be going now."

"We do?" Ranma said.

Akane nodded. "We do." She looked at Ryoga. "Why don't you come with us?"

Ryoga blinked. "To your place? Now?"

"Do you have anything better to do?" Akane asked. "Besides, we have allot to talk about. Ranma, why don't you go ahead and lead Ryoga home? There's something I want to ask Shampoo about."

Ranma caught the not-so-subtle hint. "Um, sure," he said. "Thanks for the grub, Cologne. See you guys later!"

"Yeah," Ryoga said. "And good luck with everything, Shampoo." This earned him a warming smile from the young amazon.

Ranma grabbed his arm. "Come on, Bacon Breath, let's go," he said jokingly.

Ryoga rolled his eyes. "You're never going to stop calling me by those names, are you?"

"Probably not, no," Ranma admitted.

After they left, Cologne and Mousse tactfully relocated to other parts of the building, leaving Akane and Shampoo by themselves.

"So, what you want to talk about?" Shampoo asked.

Akane cleared her throat. She hated to admit it, but there was something about the amazon girl that would always make her feel slightly insecure about herself. "Look, Shampoo… I'd like to think you're serious about this, but I need to know. Can you swear that this is not just another trick or some ruse?" Her eyes narrowed. "Because if it _is_, so help me…"

Shampoo said nothing at first, and for a moment Akane feared that she had offended her. But then Shampoo cocked her head and smiled wryly. "Oho?"

Akane frowned. "What?"

"You care about Ranma that much?" Shampoo grinned. "Afraid I steal him away, hmm?"

Akane felt her cheeks burn. "D-Don't be absurd! I'm just worried that... I-I mean, I don't..."

Shampoo laughed. "Relax, I only teasing!" Then her smile turned wistful, her voice serious. "You no need to worry. Ranma... Ranma beyond me now. Maybe always was."

"Shampoo..." Akane sighed. "I... I believe you." Feeling a sudden concern, and perhaps a bit of guilty conscience, she added: "Are you going to be okay?"

Shampoo nodded and managed to brighten up again. "Worst part over now."

"That's good," Akane said. "Well, take care then."

"Stop by again," Shampoo replied with a small wave of her hand.

And then Akane left, and Shampoo realized that she was all alone. She shivered slightly, and went to find Mousse. It probably wasn't fair to him, she knew, but right then she desperately needed a friend.

* * *

Since Ryoga had missed out on the news regarding the amazon situation, Ranma spent most of the walk home explaining what had happened recently to free him from his questionable marital status.

"So, what you're basically saying," Ryoga said once he finished, "is that you're now considered _too _strong to be an amazon husband?"

"Yeah. Pretty crazy, huh?"

"Actually, with you it kind of makes allot of sense."

Ranma chuckled. "So, where have you been lately? With your sense of directions getting better, we sort of expected you to show up more often."

"Well, I've mostly been hanging around the house," Ryoga said. "I started cleaning the place up a bit, mostly dusting stuff off. I guess I'm kinda hoping my parents are going to drop by one of these days. Oh, and last night I did some training and..." He stopped and frowned. "Damn."

"What?" Ranma asked.

"The reason I wanted to find the Nekohanten," Ryoga said. "Between Whiskey and Shampoo I forgot all about it, but I wanted to ask Cologne about something."

"Ask her about what?"

They had almost made it home by then, the house appearing in their line of sight. Ryoga sighed. "I guess I might as well show you."

A few minute later they were outside the dojo, and Ryoga had positioned himself in front of one of the training dummies Ranma and Akane sometimes used to went their frustrations. "Watch this," he said. Taking a stance with his hands raised before him, he closed his eyes and focused.

Ranma could sense the faint pressure of dense ki building. _Is he going to blast the dummy?_

As if to answer the unspoken question, Ryoga threw his hands forward and cried out: _"Shishi Houkudan!"_ But rather then the mighty blast of crushing, destructive force Ranma had expected, only a vague and unfocused ball of pulsating red light left Ryoga's hands. It dissolved as it struck its target and the dummy wobbled a bit, but was otherwise unharmed.

"That's it?" Ranma asked.

Ryoga nodded. "I only noticed yesterday, but lately my Shishi Hokudan has become incredibly weak. I doubt I could even manage my original variations anymore, let alone the perfect version. And the main blast is almost useless in combat. I guess I'm simply not depressed enough these days. Kinda ironic, huh?" He frowned. "So now I've lost one of my best techniques. That Whiskey-guy sure picked the right time to show up."

"Can't you just reinvent it, the way I did?" Ranma asked.

"Well, that's what I've been thinking," Ryoga said. "But I'll have to find a new emotional center, and the fight is tomorrow. I've only recently started to sort my feelings out, Ranma. I'm going to need allot more time then that."

"Well, maybe you won't need it?" Ranma said, trying his best to stay optimistic. "Maybe this guy is just some blowhard without any real skill?"

"Maybe," Ryoga said. "Only... you know as well as I that it's not going to be that easy. Don't you?"

Ranma sighed. "No, probably not."

"You noticed too, then?" Ryoga said. "Back there when Whiskey attacked me? There was something weird about his ki. It didn't feel right."

"There was something..." Ranma trailed off. "I dunno, something _inhuman _about it. But you know, I'm pretty sure I've felt something like that before. If only I could remember where..."

Akane approached them. "What are you two talking about?"

Ryoga shot Ranma a meaningful look, and Ranma understood. _No need for her to worry._

"Just talking about the fight," Ranma said, forcing a grin. "You know, how much Ryoga is going to humiliate Whiskey tomorrow?"

"Serves him right if you do," Akane said to Ryoga. "The nerve of that guy..."

"Speaking of fights," Ryoga said, "I do believe I made you a promise, Akane."

Ranma arched an eyebrow. "Huh?"

"That's right!" Akane exclaimed. "You two were going to tell me about your big fight." She sat down next to Ranma with a big smile on her face. "Come on, spill it! I want to hear everything."

And so they retold her the entire battle, just as they themselves recalled it...

"...and then Ranma made a face at me and made a run for it!"

"Oh, Ranma, you didn't!"

"Hey now, I wasn't..."

...such as it was. They laughed and joked and teased each other, the way good friends do, and soon another day had passed. And life went on, same as always. That is, not at all the same.

* * *

**Author's Note: **I suppose I should clarify this right away, so there's no misunderstandings: the "flashback" section of this story is what actually happened, not the story Shampoo told. (Which is why it brought up things Shampoo had no way of knowing.) Her actual retelling of the events was allot less coherent, and I decided to spare you that.

Furthermore: No, this story isn't going to turn into a Ranma/Inuyasha crossover. That part was more for fun. :)

Why did I put a Kagome cameo into this story? Well, I figured Shampoo needed_ someone_ to talk to, and Kagome seems to be a sympathetic girl. (When she's not forcing Inuyasha to hug the ground, that is.) Besides, it beats making up another cheesy original character. There'll be enough of those as it is.

Overall, I had some trouble with this chapter, and I'm still not that satisfied with it. But now its late and I have a headache. Whatever. I hope it's still up to scratch.


	8. Lion and Dragon: Ryoga vs Whiskey

Author's Note: Well, it's sure been a while…

This chapter has, to put it lightly, been something of a nightmare to get together. I lost interest, neglected it for a while, almost finished it but then somehow deleted all progress, lost most of my notes, got side-tracked with other writing projects... Well, a lot of things got in the way, basically.

It's now been, what, a year? Oh well, better late then never! And I know all my loyal fans have of course waited eagerly for this update all this time.

_-looks around, listening to chirping crickets-_

...Right? o.O

* * *

**Chapter VI: Lion and Dragon: Ryoga vs Whiskey!**

* * *

_"Life being what it is, one dreams of revenge."_

-Paul Gaugin

* * *

Ryoga woke up early that morning, and in a brief moment of disorientation he wondered where he was. Had he gotten lost again?

The sound of two people snoring –one deep and rumbling, the other light and effeminate– made him remember. He was in the Tendo guest room. Looking to his side he saw that large, fuzzy shade of Saotome Genma, giant panda-bear version, curled up by the wall. Between them, sprawled across her futon in a very unladylike manner, lay Ranma in female form. A thin sliver of drool had started to run down her cheek from her wide-open mouth.

Ryoga knew the two of them occasionally slept in their cursed forms, but he wasn't sure why. He thought back to the previous evening. Ranma had… Ranma had been thrown into the koi pond, he recalled, for something he had said –or possibly done– to Akane. Ranma had been unwilling to talk about it, but had managed to take some of her frustrations out on her father. Ryoga wondered if this type of thing happened regularly.

Ranma stirred and rolled over on her belly, coming to face him. Lifting her head to rest on her hand, she gave him a sleepy smile. "Mornin'."

"Good morning," Ryoga said. "Slept well?"

"Mmmmyeah," Ranma murmured. She sat up and yawned, reaching her arms towards the ceiling. "Today's the big day, huh?"

"Yeah," Ryoga said, nodding. They had agreed that he would spend the night and follow Ranma and Akane to school that morning. For once, he intended to be on time for his duel.

"Aowrr?" Genma, awakened by their voices, sat up and yawned.

"So," Ranma said to Ryoga, "wanna spar some before breakfast?"

Genma whipped up a sign from out of nowhere: **Hey, what about me?**

"Why bother?" Ranma asked dryly. "You're already a panda."

Genma whacked her over the head with the sign.

Ryoga watched the girl and the panda quarrel and found himself smiling at the bizarre scene._ It's funny,_ he thought, _what you can get used to in a place like this._

* * *

A few minutes later, the two of them were trading blows and kicks by the pond outside the house. Ranma had changed out of her pyjamas and into her regular clothes, but was still a girl. Ryoga had to remind himself to hold back; like always, Ranma was noticeable weaker in this shape. Today this suited her needs, though, since it gave her a good excuse not to pull her punches. Ryoga winced as he caught a particularly hard body blow. He instinctualy countered with fast kick that hit Ranma in the stomach, knocking her off her feet.

"Hey!" she said, after catching her breath. "That hurt, you big bully!"

"Damn, I-I'm sorry," Ryoga said, just before noticing the grin on Ranma's face. "…Hey!"

"Kicking a girl with your full strength like that," Ranma carried on. "Why, that's no way for a gentleman to behave!" She humphed and crossed her arms. Then she felt the wet, burning sensation of hot water suddenly being poured on her head.

"You're one to talk, Ranma," Akane said and lowered the kettle she had brought with her. "Now stop teasing poor Ryoga like that."

Ranma, now male again, looked up at his fiancé. He scratched his head and let up a goofy laugh. Akane rolled her eyes, but Ryoga relaxed and dared a smile of his own. Only a couple of weeks ago, he would have gotten upset and probably clobbered Ranma for trying to pull a stunt like that. Those days felt so distant to him now.

The sliding doors opened and Kasumi stuck her head out. "Breakfast is ready now, you three."

Ranma jumped to his feet, more or less bounding for the kitchen. "Oh boy!" Akane and Ryoga followed him in a slightly more collected manner.

When seeing Ranma in such an energetic and cheerful mood, it was hard to imagine he left the hospital only a few days earlier. Ryoga himself felt better about his life then ever before, but he still came off as glum and brooding; at least compared to Ranma. Perhaps the pigtailed martial artist was just glad to be restored to his full health, though Ryoga suspected that it might also have something to do with the fact that he now had one less fiancé to worry about.

As usual when it came to Kasumi's cooking, breakfast was delicious. Ryoga complimented her, but earned only the usual smile.

Overall, Ryoga had been surprised at how forgiving the Tendos had been to him. He had almost expected to find himself unwelcome the household after what he did to Ranma.

Never the less, there were small signs everywhere that made Ryoga suspect things still weren't all right between them. Kasumi was an angel as usual, but now there was a sort of sadness behind the smile –and maybe just a bit of fear? Nabiki ignored him for the most part and only seemed to acknowledge his existence when she really had to. Soun treated him with respect, since Ryoga was still a guest in his house, but at the same time it was clear to see how uneasy it made him.

Genma kept his usual attitude, though. Then again, Genma was always Genma.

Of course, Ranma was completely oblivious to all of this. "Hey, Ryoga? Earth to P-Chan?"

"Huh?" Ryoga realised he'd been lost in his thoughts. He blushed slightly at hearing his nickname. "Don't call me that."

"Whatever," Ranma said. "So, how you gonna beat that China guy today?"

"Well, I was thinking I'd try violence," Ryoga replied dryly.

Ranma chuckled. "Yeah, that should do the trick."

"Just as long as you teach that jerk some manners," Akane said. "I don't think I've ever met anyone in more need of them then that barbarian."

"Now, now, Akane," Soun said, giving her a sharp glance. "I understand that he was rude to you, but that's no excuse to talk like that about a foreigner."

"Yeah, ethnic slurs don't really become you, Akane," Nabiki said and winked.

Akane sweatdropped. "Ah, no, you don't understand. He _literally_ a…"

_"Sweeto! What a haul!"_

They all froze as they recognised this familiar cry of ardour. Their hearts filled with terror and despair, for they knew what would come next. And sure enough, the very next moment a small, purple-clad figure bounced in through the still wide open slide-doors.

Happosai, ancient grandmaster of the Musabetsu Kakuto Ryu, rampant kleptomaniac and overall incurable pervert, had decided to grace them with a visit.

The tiny old man landed on top of Ranma's head. "Good morning everyone!" he greeted. Then he bent down, looking into Ranma's enraged face. "Why, Ranma, my boy! Can't help but noticing you're not very female today. I better find some cold water for you."

"No thanks. I just got changed back," Ranma growled with every bit of patience he could muster. "Now why don't you _GET LOST, OLD MAN!?"_ He aimed a punch to the spot just above his head that said old man had occupied, but Happosai had already jumped off and landed on the floor next to him.

"Aw, for shame!" Happosai said and produced a plain blue bra from behind his back. "And I was going to let you try out this beauty, too!"

"Ha! Like I'd be caught dead wearing that silly thing," Ranma said.

Meanwhile, Akane stared at the sky-coloured undergarment. "Is… Is that _my_ bra!?"

"But of course!" Happosai seemed thoroughly disappointed. "That's why I thought he'd like it! Now Ranma, why don't you be a good boy and become a girl for uncle Happosai, so we can…"

_WHAM!_

The rest of the question was left unspoken as Ranma punted him like a football out through the open door.

"That stupid little thing wouldn't even fit me, you twisted monkey!" Ranma yelled after him. It took him a full two seconds to realise he probably should have worded it differently.

"Raaannmaaaa…"

Clenching her fists, Akane shook with barely contained fury. Soun, Nabiki and Kasumi quickly grabbed their plates and glasses, lifting them off the table. Almost on instinct, Ryoga hurried to do the same.

"Dammit," Ranma said, just as Akane picked the table up and flattened him with it.

It was about then that Happosai returned with the cat.

* * *

Later, two girls and a boy hurried towards Furinkan High. One of the girls was still rather damp.

"Geez, what a morning," Ranma said. "I really thought I'd get to take it easy today."

"Careful, you might be loosing your edge," Akane half-joked. Her previous anger was gone, replaced by the concern of being late for school.

Armed with one of the big, lazy house cats that inhabited the neighbourhood, Happosai had amused himself by chasing Ranma around all over the grounds. The chase had ended with Akane's hammer being introduced to the old man's head, but not before Ranma had ended up half-naked in the pond again. Due to this ordeal, they were now dangerously close to being tardy.

"Does this kind of thing happen to you a lot?" Ryoga asked.

"Pretty much on a weekly basis," Ranma said.

"Less this last month, though," Akane noted.

"Wow," Ryoga said. He'd known that random insanity followed Ranma around –he had _been_ the random insanity on more then a few occasions– but he had never really stopped to consider it before. Ranma's problems had always seemed so minor compared to his own, after all. "That's gotta be tough."

"Well, it's amazing what you can get used to," Ranma said. "Anyway, at least now I can be sure I won't be splashed along the way."

"Why would you be…"

_Splash!_

"Does that answer you question?"

"Bweee!"

Ranma looked at the ladle lady, who cheerfully went on with her business as if nothing out of the ordinary had happened. Actually, in a certain sense, nothing had. "How does she…? _Why_ does she…?" Ranma shook his head, and suddenly noticed that Akane was staring at Ryoga. The black piglet was sitting in a pile of clothes, looking awkward.

"Um, are you okay, Akane?" Ranma asked.

"Hm?" Akane looked up at him. "Oh, it's just… I've never actually _seen_ him transform before."

"Oh," Ranma said, no really sure how to respond.

Fortunately Akane seemed to snap out of it. "Oh, dammit! Ranma, we don't have time for this! We've got to hurry!"

"What about…?" Ranma began, but Akane had already snatched Ryoga into her arms. "You grab his clothes! Come on!" she said and started running.

"Geez," Ranma sighed. She scooped up the discarded garments and followed Akane.

Ryoga's tiny body was pressed against Akane's bossum. He felt her pulsing heart and her breath on his neck. He struggled somewhat, wanting to tell her: _I can run on my own! I can keep up! Don't worry, I'm faster then I look! _Be she either didn't notice or didn't care.

Finally, he gave in and surrendered to her embrace. _Just like old times,_ he thought with an inward sigh. No one ever said it was going to be easy, after all.

* * *

Despite their best efforts, the lesson had already started when they arrived. Miss Hinako was writing on the blackboard as they skidded in through the door. The childlike teacher lowered her chalk and placed her hands on her hips. "Tendo-san and Saotome-san, you are both eight minutes late," she said.

"Sorry, Miss Hinako," Akane said with a quick bow. "We were delayed."

Hinako's eyes fell on Ryoga and she squealed: "Oh my gosh! What a cute piggy! Can I hold him?"

"Well..." Akane said, but Hinako had already skipped up to her and more or less pried the piglet out of her arms. "You're such a cutey-wutey, aren't you?" she said, holding him up before her face. "Tendo-san, is this your pig?"

"Well, actually..." Akane sweatdropped.

"Yes it is," Yuka spoke up from her desk on the front row.

"Yeah," her friend Sayuri piped in, "That's P-Chan, isn't it?"

For a moment, Akane was torn between the options of lying to the entire class, including her two best friends, or humiliating Ryoga by revealing his secret. "...Yes. Yes, yes, that's P-Chan," she finally said. _So this is what Ranma had to go through?_

"You're so adorable, yes you are!" Hinako cooed to Ryoga, who was obviously feeling very uncomfortable. Then, seemingly remembering where she was, she looked at Ranma and Akane. "Oh, that's right. Tendo-san, take five minutes with the buckets in the hallway for late arrival. Saotome, you take ten. _Because_," she added sharply as Ranma opened her mouth to protest this injustice, "I have already told you I don't want you dressing up as a girl in my class."

Ranma closed her mouth and glared. Miss Hinako was well-aware of the nature of the curse –she was no stranger to shapeshifting herself– yet she persisted to refer to it as "dressing up," which really annoyed Ranma. Even worse, she strongly suspected that annoying her was the whole point. But since she tried to avoid conflicts with the pseudo-vampiric teacher whenever possible, she let it rest.

"Um, what about... P-Chan?" Akane dared to ask.

"Oh, don't worry!" Hinako said, cheerfully giving her a thumb's up. "He's in good hands."

When hearing this, Ryoga panicked. _Oh, hell no! I ain't spending the whole lesson in the hands of this crazy woman!_ Struggling out of her grip, he squealed and leapt for freedom, not really caring where he landed.

He ended up on one of the desks. He had only barely drawn a sigh of relief when he felt two new hands pick him up, and suddenly he was staring into the smiling face of a cute girl with a ponytail.

"Well, hello there, P-Chan," Sayuri said. "Did you want to say hello to little Sayuri-chan, hmm?"

"Oh, can I hold him next?" Yuka said, leaning over her own desk to have a better look.

Two rows away, Hiroshi and Daisuke exchanged looks that clearly said: _Girls! What is it with them and pigs, anyway?_

The unfamiliar amounts of female attention stunned Ryoga only for a moment. Then he leapt out of Sayuri's hands, passed Yuka's surprised face, bounced off her desk and landed on top of Gosunkugi Hikaru's head. From there he launched himself into the air again, desperately aiming for Akane. "Bweeeee!"

Ranma snatched him out of the air before he reached his target. "Gotcha!" Holding him by the bandanna, she placed Ryoga on her shoulder and turned to her fiancé. "Come now, Akane. Those buckets aren't going to hold themselves."

Hinako pouted. "Aww! Bring the piggy back when you're done!" she called after them.

"You know," Ranma said once they were alone in the hallway, "I think Hinako has been getting more mature lately."

"Really?" Akane said. "I can't say I've noticed."

"Hm." Ranma shrugged. "Maybe it's just my imagination, then?" Still with Ryoga on her shoulder, she started walking down the corridor.

"Where are you going?" Akane asked.

"To find some hot water for myself and Pig-Boy here," Ranma replied, pointing her thumb at Ryoga. "He's got a fight today, after all. He'll need to look his best."

* * *

A few minutes later Ryoga was sitting naked and human on the floor of a storage room.

"Here," Ranma said and tossed him the bundle of clothes. She then raised the kettle over her head and poured the remaining hot water over herself, turning from female to male before his eyes. "You know, considering how popular P-Chan is with girls, I don't see why you're so worried about this coming out." He winked. "It may just do wonders to your social life."

"I don't expect you to understand," Ryoga said. "But thanks anyway. Won't you get in trouble for this, though?"

"Nah, it's Hinako we're talking about," Ranma said. "By now she's probably forgotten I even showed up in the first place."

"Still, thank you," Ryoga said. He had just finished pulling his shirt on and gave Ranma one of his rare smiles. They were still few and far in between, but they were always sincere.

Amazingly, this seemed to fluster Ranma somewhat. "Well, try not to go all mushy on me, now. Otherwise you won't be any challenge when we have our rematch."

Ryoga's eyes narrowed. "About that, Ranma..."

"Oh, that's right!" Ranma exclaimed, pretending not to hear him. "I should probably show you the way to the sporting field just in case. Don't want you getting lost again, right?"

There it was again. _The nervousness, the way he changes the subject..._ Ranma was hiding something from him, Ryoga was sure of that now. Something to do with that rematch. But what?

He briefly considered pressing Ranma about it, but decided that it wasn't the right time. Besides, Ranma was entitled to a few secrets of his own. "...Yeah. Lead the way."

Ranma was all too happy to oblige.

* * *

After leading Ryoga to the field, Ranma left him to attend his next class. Now alone, Ryoga could only wait and wonder. And there was much to wonder about.

Ranma was definitely acting odd. In fact, he had been acting odd ever since he woke up at the hospital. Ryoga couldn't quite put his finger on it, but he felt that he was missing something and that Ranma was going out of his way to keep it that way.

Then there was the more immediate problem with Whiskey. Ryoga still couldn't recall where he'd met the barbarian before or what he might have done to offend him. He certainly hadn't walked out on him in a duel or knocked him into a cursed spring, that much he knew for sure.

"Oi! Ryoga!"

He wasn't sure how long he had been sitting there by the sporting field when the familiar voice woke him up from his thoughts. He looked up to see Kuonji Ukyo approaching him, carrying along her portable griddle, a folding table and a large bag of what Ryoga knew could only be okonomiyaki ingredients.

"Hi there, sugar," she said cheerfully. "I thought I'd drop by early and set up shop. I always make a killing at these events."

"Hey, Ukyo," Ryoga said. "Opportunistic as always, eh?"

"You know it!" Ukyo said while folding out her table and starting up the griddle. "When you have a business to run you gotta win that bread or it won't go around. There's no other way to it!" She started digging through the bag. "But, actually," she added in a more serious tone, "to be honest I also wanted to talk to you, Ryoga. About... About what happened to Ranchan."

_Oh damn,_ Ryoga thought. In the back of his mind he knew he should have anticipated this, but with all that had been going on he had somehow managed to repress it. "Look, Ukyo, about that..."

"Oh, it's alright!" said Ukyo quickly. "I'm not mad at you or anything. I've already talked to Ranma about it."

"Oh?" Ryoga frowned. "And what did he say, exactly?"

"That it was an accident, of course. I mean, at first I was going to clobber you good anyway, but Ranchan said you didn't mean it to turn out like that and that the two of you are friends now. And, well, if he's forgiven you I guess I can't hold a grudge." She shrugged. "I just wanted you to know that we're cool, okay?

"...Right," Ryoga said. "Um, thanks."

_An accident? _He could barely believe his ears. As if Ranma wasn't already acting strange, now he was going around telling people it had been an accident? _Twisting your ankle while sparring is an accident. What I did... _

It hadn't been an accident. He knew that, and he knew Ranma knew that.

His contemplations were disturbed by a loud churning from his stomach. Ukyo chuckled. "I take it you haven't had any lunch yet? Hang on, I'll fix you up with one on the house."

"You don't have to..." Ryoga started but Ukyo had already poured a generous helping of batter on the griddle and began applying toppings. The sizzling sound and mouth-watering aroma silenced the rest of his protests. He sighed and smiled. "Thanks, Ukyo,"

Ukyo smiled back at him. "Hey, what are friends for?"

_Friends... _Ryoga thought. Were they friends? It was true they'd worked together on occasion in their mutual ambition to separate Ranma and Akane, and he supposed they had always gotten along pretty well. Not to mention, he now realised, that she had been the first girl his own age he'd been able to hold conversations with without blushing and stammering all the time.

He realized that he wanted them to be friends, but could they be? Ranma and Akane was of course a good start, but Ryoga could see that this might lead to trouble. As far as he knew, Ukyo was still hellbent on making Ranma her own and didn't know that Ryoga had decided to move on.

His brooding was interrupted when Ukyo shoved an okonomiyaki under his nose. "Here ya go, hot off the fryer."

Ryoga thanked her again and took a bite out of it. "Delicious!" he said and meant it. The taste alone was already getting his spirits up. While eating, he glanced at the young chef and made his decision. The chaos of Furinkan, he realized, thrived on misunderstandings and keeping secrets was never a good idea. _Probably best I get it over with right away_. "Look, Ukyo, I have to..."

"Hold that thought, sugar," Ukyo said and pointed. "Look who's here!"

He turned to see Ranma and Akane jogging down the edge of the field towards them. Behind them, at a slower pace, came Hiroshi, Daisuke, Yuka and Sayuri, Nabiki and a host of the other students.

Ranma waved at them. "Ryoga! Ucchan!"

Ukyo waved back and then turned to Ryoga again. "Okay, what did you want to say?"

Ryoga sweatdropped. _That got awkward fast_. "Actually, lets take it after the fight, okay?"

Ukyo gave him an odd look, but shrugged. "Sure thing."

"Feeling ready, Ryoga?" Ranma asked.

"As ready as I'll ever be, I guess," Ryoga replied. "Whiskey's late, though. He should have been here by now."

Ranma chuckled. "Probably karma."

"Be nice," Akane said, gently elbowing him.

"So level with me, you guys," Nabiki said. "What kind of guy is Ryoga facing here?"

Ranma shrugged. "Hard to tell. Chinese, talks a lot. Sort of Kuno-Mousse-Tarou-ish."

"Is he any strong?" Ukyo asked.

"I think he might be," Ranma said and turned to Nabiki. "How are Ryoga's odds?"

"Pretty even," Nabiki said. "People don't seem to know what to make of this."

Ukyo nodded. "On one hand, they know Ryoga is strong. But on the other hand, he doesn't have the best record. They're just not used to see him fighting someone who isn't, well, _you._"

"Nice to know I have some respect around here," Ryoga said and rolled his eyes. "So I'm the runner-up and Whiskey's the wild-card."

"Don't worry, Ryoga," Akane said. "We believe in you. This is your day."

"And it is a splendid day indeed, fair Akane, blessed as it is by your radiant presence!" a familiar voice called out.

Akane closed her eyes hard. "You have got to be kidding me."

Kuno Tatewake strode up to them with a rose in one hand and his bokken casually leaned against his shoulder with the other. "Truly, like the holy sun itself, you bring splendor even to the darkest day." Noticing Ranma, he glared. "Saotome. _You,_ on the other hand, mar even the best of moods, like a dark cloud turning brightest day into blackest night."

"Oh yeah?" Ranma cracked his knuckles. "Well, if it's a blackout you want, I'm game!"

Akane frowned. "Ranma, don't make a scene."

"Hey, he started it," Ranma said.

"As I shall be the one to finish it!" Kuno said. "Why, where we not in the presence of ladies," he made a gesture towards Akane, Nabiki and Ukyo, "I should ryve thee in the sides twain right here and now!"

"By all means, go ahead and get your butt kicked," Nabiki muttered under her breath. Meanwhile, Ryoga put his head to the side with a puzzled look, as if he was listening to something.

"Give it a rest, Kuno," Ranma said. "You've been nothing but trouble lately. More then usual, I mean."

"Um, guys..." Ryoga said.

"Preposterous!" Kuno exclaimed. "If anything, it is _you _who have only turned all the more malevolent and vexatious! And if I lie, then may the judgement of the heavens strike me where I stand!"

"Hey, do you guys hear a whistling sound?" Ryoga asked.

And then Shampoo descended upon them on her bike like some sort of apocalyptic rider. She landed hard of Kuno's head, where she balanced for a moment before jumping off. "Nihao, everyone!"

"Beauty from beyond the sea," Kuno said in a wounded tone. "How have I invoked your ire?"

"Stick boy okay, no complain," Shampoo said and pushed the kendoka aside. She turned to Ranma and handed him a bowl of noodles. "Ranma! Shampoo bring lunch!"

"Um, thanks, I guess," Ranma said. He eyed the noodles suspiciously, but the many years on the road with his father had conditioned him to never turn down a free meal.

"Shampoo, what's the big idea?" Akane said sternly. "I thought you said..."

"Oh, Shampoo bring food to violent girl and lost boy too!" Shampoo said and smiled as she pushed another bowl into Akane's hands.

Akane stared at it in utter bewilderment. "...that... you...what?"

"Here you go!" The amazon handed the third bowl to Ryoga, who stuttered a thanks. "You eat good now, need strength for fighting!"

"Camaraderie, Shampoo?" Ukyo said. "This isn't like you."

Shampoo replied by winking and sticking her tongue out to the chef. "Sorry, Spatula Girl, no ramen for you!"

Ukyo fumed. "I don't want non of your ramen!"

Akane, Ranma and Ryoga shared a relieved sigh. I would seem like Shampoo's spirits were up to their regular levels again.

"Ho ho ho! We couldn't well miss out on this, could we?" They all turned their heads to see Cologne approach them on her cane, closely followed by Mousse. "After all, this does indirectly concern us."

"I'm glad you came along," Ryoga said. "Any idea what I might be up against here?"

"Hard to say beforehand," Cologne said with a shrug. Then she looked intently at him. "But know this, Ryoga: I have never been defeated by a barbarian, and I expect no less from one of my students, current or former."

Ryoga scoffed. "Well, I better make sure I win then."

"You will be careful, right?" Akane said with a hint of worry in her voice.

"Oh, come on!" Ranma said. "If Ryoga could defeat _me_, then beating this yahoo should be a breeze!"

Ryoga sweatdropped. "Hey now..."

"Well, have you considered," Akane said, eyes narrowing, "that for all we know Whiskey might be even stronger then you? I'm just concerned, that all."

"Oh yeah!?" Ranma said, raising his voice. "Well _I _think..."

While the conversation grew into an argument, Ukyo looked up from her okonomiyaki and spied something that made her frown. "Hey, guys!" she said, probably saving Ranma from considerable pain and discomfort. They ceased the shouting match and looked at her. She raised a finger to point. "That wouldn't be our man, would it?"

Indeed, Whiskey had finally arrived to the scene. He walked in a slow, determined way that would have looked very dramatic had he emerged out of a bank of fog on a moonlit night, but it rather lost it's edge in the pleasant sunlight. However, there was no mistaking the the cruel smile on his lips. It was that of a man with no good intentions.

Nabiki clapped her hands together. "Well, better get back to work! Good luck, Ryoga-.kun, I'm rooting for you!"

"Gee, thanks," Ryoga said, standing up. "Well, let's get this over with."

"Hibiki! Finally, here we are!" Whiskey said. "At long last have you decided to stop running from our inevitable battle!"

"Don't talk big," said Ryoga dryly. "You're the one who's late."

Whiskey ignored him. "As the champion of the Xulongyi tribe I, Chhaang Wei-Xi the Barbarian, hereby decreed that you, Hibiki Ryoga, have _ruefully _wronged both me and my people and must therefore die by my hands!"

"Even barbarian speak better Japanese then I," Shampoo complained.

"This will be a duel in the time-honored tradition of my people;" Whiskey carried on. "We fight man to man, with no outside interference, and we fight until _death!"_

Ryoga groaned. "I'm not going to kill you, Whiskey. I told you before, I don't even know what we're fighting over."

"Don't play stupid!" Whiskey yelled. "Do you truly expect me to believe that you have forgotten about that fateful day, when you robbed me of my woman and stole my people's greatest treasure," he pointed straight at Ryoga's head for emphasis, "the enchanted bandanna that you carry tied around your head _to this very day!"_

"Enchanted bandanna?" Ranma said.

"Robbed you of your woman?" Akane said.

"Wait! _Now _I remember!" Ryoga exclaimed, hitting his palm. "You're the creep I saved that girl from, back in China!"

"_Saved!_" Whiskey screamed. "She was my chosen bride-to-be! I had every right to claim her! But thanks to you, I lost both my woman and…"

"Wait, _hold on _a minute!" Akane interrupted. "This sounds _very _interesting! Ryoga, what exactly are you talking about? What's this about you saving a girl?"

"I remember it clearly now," Ryoga said, thinking back. "It was shortly after I was cursed at Jusenkyo. I was lost again and feeling more miserable then ever, trying my best to find my way back to the Japanese sea, when…"

* * *

**Two years earlier.**

**Unidenitifed mountain-pass, Qinghai Province, China.**

"Where the hell am I now!" Ryoga shouted. His cry echoed all over the cliffs, turning into a taunt in his ears. "SAOTOME RANMA, THIS IS ALL YOUR FAULT!"

Over all, the eternally lost boy's life had now hit an all-time new low. Not only had he yet again been denied the battle he had gone through such hardships to fight _and _gotten himself cursed so that ordinary water now threatened to turn him into an animal, but to make matter worse he had managed to get completely and utterly lost. Again!

He put his hands to his temples as groaned in despair. His only hope now was to find someone who could at least point him in the right general direction. Though the chances were slim that this would actually help, it was still better then running around mindlessly only to loose his way even more.

His rations were running low and this was really starting to worry him. Ryoga was no stranger to surviving in the wild, but he had his limits. Getting lost on the Japanese countryside was one thing. Getting lost in the middle of the eastern Himalayans was another.

"Aiyaaaa!"

Ryoga snapped out if his desperation, barely believing his own ears. A voice! A human voice nearby! _Someone to ask for directions, at last!_ He frantically turned his head every which way, trying to locate the screaming person, knowing full well that he risked running off in the wrong direction of he moved.

Then he saw them, appearing from behind a nearby cliff. A tall, lanky boy with spiky green hair and a grim look on his face. He was pulling along a frantic, struggling girl by the arm. She was the one who had screamed and was, in fact, still preoccupied with this.

"I'm, excuse me?" Ryoga said loudly, trying to outvoice the girl.

Noticing him, the boy glared at Ryoga and yelled something in Chinese.

Ryoga frowned. "I didn't quite get that."

"Foreign Devil! Leave now or taste my fury!" the boy snarled in badly mangled Japanese. "This no is your business!"

"Aiyaaa! No listen to him!" the girl said. Ryoga now saw that she was crying. "He very bad person! Please save poor and unfortunate Chicha!"

Apparently angered by this outburst, the boy snapped something at her in his native tongue. He raised his hand to strike, only to find that Ryoga had grabbed on to his wrist, holding his arm in place.

"You _really _shouldn't have tried to do that just now," he said coldly. "Now let the girl go."

For a moment, the boy looked utterly surprised. Then his eyes narrowed and he released the girl. Ryoga, in turn, let go of his arm.

"Ku-ku-ku," the Chinese youngling laughed, gently rubbing his wrist. "The one who should no have done that… _is YOU!" _He threw his foot up, aiming a kick for Ryoga's head. The girl barely had time to gasp.

Ryoga effortlessly caught his foot with his hand before the kick connected. "You really don't know what to stop, do you?" Then he jerked the boy off his remaining foot, swung him overhead and slammed him into the unforgiving ground. The boy passed out immediately.

"Looser," Ryoga muttered.

For a moment, the girl just sat on the ground and stared at him in awe. Then she got to her feet, ran over to the unconscious boy, and started to kick him repeatedly while yelling what Ryoga guessed were curses and insults. When stomping him apparently didn't have the desired effect, she picked up a rock the size of a watermelon, seemingly intent on smashing him into a fine paste.

Ryoga coughed. "Um, excuse me, miss?" he said.

The girl froze and, apparently recalling her manners, dropped the rock –on top of the boy. She then surprised Ryoga by falling on her knees before him and bowing her head.

"Strong and noble foreigner," she said. "Humble Chicha give great thanks for saving her from fate worse then death!"

As she looked up, Ryoga realized that she was very cute; milky skin and large eyes, as dark as the night itself. A delicate face framed by long, jet-black hair.

_"He's_ a fate worse then death?" Ryoga said and pointed at the unconscious boy. The girl named Chicha nodded vigorously. Ryoga scratched his head. "Right, no problem. Anyway, I just wanted to know if you could tell me which way east is."

Chicha gave him a questioning look before pointing in the direction of the setting sun. "That way."

"Thanks," Ryoga said. He noticed that the girl was still kneeling before him. "Um, you can go home now, he won't bother you anymore."

Chicha looked up at him. "You… set Chicha free?"

There was a pleading, almost desperate tone to her voice that made Ryoga wonder what he had gotten himself into. "Um, sure, if that's what you want."

"Really?"

"Yes, really. Off you goa_aah!"_

Before Ryoga could finish his sentence, Chicha had thrown her arms around him in a tight hug. _"Xie-xie! Xie-xie!"_ she laughed, over and over again.

"Whoa!" Ryoga cried, now blushing furiously. "I don't… I mean… T-take it easy, will you?"

Chicha settled down and smiled at him. "Forgive for outburst, make Chicha too, too happy! What name of kind and courageous saviour?"

"Eh, Ryoga," Ryoga said. The girl's constant praise was making him feel rather embarrassed. "Hibiki Ryoga."

Chicha reached into her pocket and retrieved a bandanna. It was yellow and decorated with symmetric black patterns. She held it up to Ryoga with both hands. "Please, fearless and heroic Hibiki Ryoga accept this humble gift as small token of great appreciation!"

The bandanna didn't look like much, but Ryoga didn't want to hurt her feelings. _These mountain-folk are terribly old-fashioned,_ he thought. _I better take it, or she'll probably feel dishonored or something_. "I accept your gift," he said, taking the piece of cloth. He then removed his old plain bandanna and tied the new one around his head.

"It suit you," Chicha declared. "Must get back to village now, airen probably worried." She leaned over and pecked him on the cheek, making him blush even more then before. "Chicha never forget you, Hibiki Ryoga. Tell whole tribe of your valor! _Song bie!"_

And then she bounded away across the cliffs, leaving Ryoga alone with the still unconscious boy. Ryoga threw him a brief look, shrugged his shoulder and wandered off once again, this time in the right direction for once.

* * *

"…and that's the whole story," Ryoga finished. "Of course, it was only later that I discovered that the bandanna could create infinite copies of itself."

"So _that's_ the way it works!" Ranma said. "I always thought you were wearing several at once!"

"That is not just some bandanna!" Whiskey shouted. "It is the Heavenly Eternity Cloth, the First Treasure of Xulong, a sacred relic belonging to _my _clan! I demand that you surrender it to me now!"

"Will you back out of the fight if I do?" Ryoga asked.

"Feh! Of course not!" Whiskey replied. "You still need to pay for humiliating me, after all. I will, however, give you a quick and relatively painless death rather then a prolonged, agonizing one."

"Hold it!" Akane said. "I have a question."

"Oh, what is it now, you _annoying woman?_" Whiskey groaned.

Akane fought back an impulse to run over to the man and strangle him with her bare hands. Instead she asked: "What happened to the girl?"

"Oh, yes, let us not forget that!" Whiskey said and glared at Ryoga. "Thanks to your interference, Hibiki Ryoga, I lost my legal claim to Chicha! Instead of becoming my wife, as destiny and tradition would have it, she ran off and married that weakling, Liqueur!"

"Is this making sense to anyone?" Ranma asked and scratched his head. "'Cause is sure doesn't to me."

"I believe I can explain," Cologne said. "Barbarian law states that a woman is, essentially, the legal property of either her father or her husband. If a young man wishes to marry a girl, he must first defeat the father in combat and thus win the ownership of the girl in question. He may then choose to marry her, decide on another husband for her or -in very rare cases- allow her to make her own choice. Chicha was probably in love with this Liqueur, only he was not strong enough to defeat her father."

"But I was!" Whiskey said. "She was mine by law!"

"Yes, yes," Cologne said, annoyed at being interrupted. "However, if another man defeats the first one before the marriage is completed, the right to the girl is passed on once again, in this particular case to Ryoga. Since he chose to "set her free", she could then marry whoever she wanted."

"Barbarians have crazy laws," Shampoo commented.

Akane had listened carefully to Cologne's explanation with a grim expression, and was now staring at Whiskey in pure hatred. "You mean that if Ryoga hadn't shown up when he did, she would have been force to… He would have…" A small twitch appeared in her right eye and she clenched her fists hard.

"So now you understand," Whiskey said. "Twice have you shamed me, and now only your destruction can redeem my honor! I have trained hard for this day, and I swear that…"

_"SHUT UP!"_

There was a stunned silence as everyone turned to Akane. The middle Tendo sister was clearly infuriated, only barely keeping her temper under control.

"That does it!" she growled, momentarily shining in a faint but menacing light. The assembled martial artists could actually feel the anger radiating from her. "Ryoga, _kick his ass!" _

"What?" Ryoga said numbly.

"You heard me, rip him to pieces!" Akane shouted. "Ryoga, I will officially forgive you for every bad, reckless or stupid thing you have _ever_ done since the day you showed up here, if you only kick that baka gaijin's chauvinistic ass all the way back to China _right now! _I want you to stomp him into the ground and make him ask for more, do you hear me?"

"Um, Akane?" Ranma sweatdropped. "Aren't you exaggerating a bit now?"

"Beat him until candy comes out!" Akane shouted, paying no heed to her finance. "Kill! _Kill!"_

Shampoo smiled. "You know, Violent Girl not so bad after all," she noted.

"The loudmouthed wench is right, enough talk!" Whiskey said, ignoring the colorful insults Akane had started to spout at him. "Hibiki Ryoga, prepare to meet your doom!"

"Well, at least I know you're an enormous jerk," Ryoga said and motioned to the others to fall back. "So I won't have to feel bad about the beating I'm about to give you."

He took his usual stance, lifting his hands and moving his feet apart for balance. Whiskey assumed an openly challenging stance, holding his right hand out as if inviting his opponent. He didn't have to wait long. Ryoga closed the distance between them with a burst of sudden speed and threw the first punch.

It was a good punch, but Whiskey nimbly dodged to the side, turning his body a full 360 degrees and swiping his arm out in the same motion. Ryoga saw the attack coming and pulled his arm up to block it. but as he did red flames seemed to envelope the barbarian's arm. When it connected, an unexpected force sent Ryoga staggering back.

Surprised rather then hurt, Ryoga saw Whiskey close in for another attack. His left arm was raised for another strike and it too flamed red. Instinct made Ryoga dodge and he felt the draft of dislocated air on his face. Behind him the ground was ripped open by the pressure. He countered with a kick but Whiskey had already danced out of his range.

"That's a neat trick," Ryoga said.

Whiskey smirked and spread his flaming arms. "I must say, I'm disappointed. If this your best I will win without using my full power." As he spoke, the aura spread from his arms across his entire body. The air itself seemed to pulsate with aggression. "I'll be merciful and crush you right away."

"There it is again," Ranma said. He and the others had retreated to one of the low staircases leading down to the field. "It's coming off him in waves!"

"This aura.." Cologne said. "It doesn't feel quite human."

"Not quite human," Ranma mumbled. He could almost remember now...

Whiskey lunged, and once again Ryoga was nearly overwhelmed by the primal sensation of danger. This time he was ready, however, and managed to stay in control of his instincts. Rather the freezing up, he met Whiskey's charge.

The barbarian launched a barrage of punches and kicks and Ryoga had to use all his speed and strength to keep his defense up. Each strike he blocked sent a shock of pain through his limbs and pushed him back little by little.

"Come on! Is this a joke?" Whiskey laughed. "Is this all you've got?"

_Keep talking, you arrogant bastard, _Ryoga thought. He was starting to see a pattern in Whiskey's technique. Just a little more... _There! An opening! _

Whiskey didn't see the feint until it was too late and Ryoga's kick struck him hard in the head. Ryoga knew he had only won a few moments and immediately threw a punch at Whiskey's torso.

Whiskey caught it by the wrist before it connected. He smiled as he turned his head back, apparently unharmed. "Now that's more like it!" He countered with a vicious blow that sent Ryoga staggering back. Whiskey came in for a leg-sweep but in the last moment Ryoga jumped over it in a backwards flip. As he turned in the air, he focused and tried to find that last bit of sadness he knew must still hide deep in his heart. He landed and struck his hands out. _"Shishi Houkudan!"_

The resulting blast was a lot larger then the one he had shown Ranma the other day, but unfortunately still not enough. Whiskey barely flinched, his own aura shielding him from Ryoga's super-dense ki. "Ha! Was that supposed to hurt!?" he shouted. "Take THIS!"

As he lashed out with his hand, Whiskey's ki formed a mighty bolt. Ryoga thought he saw the vague outlines of a large, clawed hand before it slammed into him. The heat burned like fire to his skin and the force of the blast sent him flying. It arched upwards, lifting him high into the air before making a full turn and sending him crashing straight into the ground. A collective gasp went through the onlookers. As the dust settled, Ryoga was lying lifeless and still on the ground.

"Oh no! Ryoga!" Akane yelled. "Please get up!"

Ranma blinked, as if he had just realized something. "Oh damn..."

"What is it?" Akane asked.

"His ki!" Ranma said. "I remember now…"

"Ranma, stop freaking me out. What do you mean?"

Ranma looked at her. "Herb," he said. "That's where I've sensed it before. It's the same kind of feeling I got from Herb!"

Akane frowned. "What does that mean?"

"I don't know." Ranma frowned. "Dammit, Ryoga. Get up already."

Whiskey chuckled as he approached Ryoga's motionless body. "Ku-ku-ku... And so it ends. You know, considering all the trouble I had hunting you down I had really hoped for more of a challenge. Though, I admit humiliating you in front of your comrades was pretty fun."

"I'm sorry..."

"Hm?" Whiskey glanced at Ryoga, surprised that his opponent was still conscious. "What was that?"

For a moment, Ryoga didn't move. But then he pulled his arm in and slowly started to push himself up. "I'm sorry, Whiskey…"

"You're damn right, you're sorry," Whiskey said. "But it's too late for apologies. I'm going to…"

"I'm _sorry, _but I can't die here," Ryoga said. He lifted his head and started to get back up on his feet again. "Because… Because I just started a new life, you know? I've wasted so much time, but I've finally started to see all the really important things. I can't allow you kill me _now_, that'd be way too ironic." He stood up, and Whiskey glared at him as he brushed his clothes off with a defiant look on his face. "I'm going to beat you, Whiskey. Even if it means going all out. I'm sorry."

Wild cheers erupted from the audience, but Whiskey clenched his fists and his face contorted in a mask of rage. "So be it!"

They moved as one, dashing towards one another again. But this time Ryoga's attack was only a feint. In the very last moment he dodged Whiskey's punch and struck his finger towards the ground. Whiskey barely had the time to react when the soil exploded under his feet. Momentarily blinded by the shower of dirt, dust and shattered rock, he didn't see Ryoga's attack before it hit. It was an uppercut to the abdomen, knocking the air out of Whiskey's lungs. A fast kick followed, sending him flying.

Fazed but not injured, the furious warrior turned his eyes to his opponent only to find that had had vanished. Half a moment later, Ryoga appeared in the air behind Whiskey, his hands folded above his head. With a might cry he brought them down, striking Whiskey hard and sending him crashing back to the earth. Still falling, Ryoga focused his will and drew upon his very last reserves. _"Again! SHISHI HOKUDAN!"_

The blast was more desperation then depression, more willpower then sadness, but it was easily as large as one of his old ones. With a little help from gravity, it struck Whiskey like the vengeance of heaven itself. The weight and pressure crushed the ground and deformed the entire field.

Then it died away as suddenly as it was born. Ryoga landed next to the crater, his hands still smoking from the blast. He looked down on Whiskey, who lay unconscious on the bottom, half pressed into the dirt. "Take that!" Ryoga said, breathing hard from the effort.

The crowd, which had until then been silent, now exploded in a roar of screaming students.

"He did it!" Akane cheered.

"Way to go, Ryoga!" Ranma shouted.

With a tired smile, Ryoga turned to look at them, averting his eyes from the falling barbarian. For a moment, Whiskey's eyelids flickered.

Then they snapped open.

A tendril of red fire struck Ryoga in the back, knocking him off his feet. He rolled with the fall and retreated, instantly on edge again. The cheering had stopped.

Whiskey rose from the crater, his eyes glowing red, his aura burning more intensely then ever. Multiple tendrils randomly lashed out of it, coiling like crazed snakes.

"I won't... allow it... to end this way!" Whiskey snarled, his voice no longer sounding human. He grabbed the cloth of his shirt and ripped it off, baring his slender, muscular torso. The fiery aura seemed to originate from an object on his chest; an orb or sphere hung around his neck in a thin gold chain.

_What the hell!? _Ryoga stared in amazement. Something like that could have knocked Ranma out. _Who is this guy? _What _is he?_

"I will... have my... VENGENCE!" Whiskey raised his arms to the sky and the tendrils of ki arched up, merging into a single large pillar. It solidified, grew limbs, gained features, and suddenly Ryoga faced the terrible truth of Whiskey's mysterious power.

It was a dragon, made out of nothing but ki and limitless anger. It towered before him in majestic radiance, coiling like a serpent, growling like a lion. The instinctual fear Ryoga had felt before returned, stronger then ever. The bloodthirst was almost tangible and Ryoga was not the only one affected now: a wave of panic swept through the onlookers. Some ran for their lives, others froze in the spot they were seated, unable to move.

"Aiyaaa!" Shampoo gasped while Ukyo uttered a very unladylike phrase best not repeated.

"This ain't possible!" Ranma said. "Where does he get all that power from?"

Cologne said nothing, but features betrayed anger as well as fear.

Whatever it was, it was fast. Ryoga barely had time to throw himself out of the way and a claw whizzed by his face. The dragon skimmed the ground, made a loop and dove at him again. It crashed into the ground as Ryoga dodged once more. But he wasn't fast enough this time and the massive body slammed into him from the side. Burned by its heat, Ryoga was thrown several meters, tumbling across the field. Realizing that he was dead if he didn't keep moving, he jumped to his feet, ignoring the pain and trying to blink the dust out of his eyes.

"Ryoga!" Ranma shouted. "Use that stream thing!"

"I can't!" Ryoga yelled back. He jumped again, narrowly avoiding the dragon's fanged maw. "You guys are too close! You'd get hurt!"

"Ranma, you'd best prepare yourself," Cologne said. Ranma turned to look at her. She was watching the battle with a grim expression. "Whiskey's anger and lust for vengeance has turned him into a demon. We may have to intervene."

Ranma hesitated, but then he nodded. "Right, but let's give Ryoga a chance first. It's not over yet."

Things did not look good for the aforementioned lost boy, however. The dragon kept attacking with relentless ferocity and seemed invulnerable. All Ryoga could do was to keep avoiding it, but his injuries were affecting his speed and soon his stamina would start to run out. He desperately threw a pair of bandanna at the dragon but they were incinerated by the flames. _Alright, so I can't hurt it, _he thought. His eyes fell on Whiskey. The tip of the dragon's tail was still connected to his aura, feeding off his ki. _Then let's try taking out the power source!_

"Hey, you big dumb lizard! I've over here!" he taunted. The dragon rose to the sky, displaying it's full length. Then, with a deafening roar, it plunged towards him. Ryoga had timed it perfectly, and just before it struck him he leaped forward. The impact behind him shook the ground but he kept his focus on his target, running towards Whiskey as fast as his legs could carry him.

But he wasn't fast enough. He only made it halfway when the ground exploded under his feet with the force of a rocket. As it gored him, he vaguely realized that it had tunneled its way through the ground.

He was sent flying high into the air and all he could see was sky. A feeling of weightlessness overcame him. It took him several moments to realize that he had really stopped falling; that he was now floating in the air. He also realized that the ground was gone. All he could see was blue sky and white clouds, above as well as below.

_Okay,_ he thought. _This is definitely weird. _He hoped Whiskey hadn't actually killed him already, though he had been close to death a few times before and this looked nothing like it.

And then he saw the dragon.

It was much, much larger then the one Whiskey had conjured up. This dragon was huge. Enormous, even. Its head filled the sky, partially lizard and partially lion, with whiskers like wispy clouds, horns like giant trees and a coiling, snake-like body, seemingly endless. The scaly hide gleamed like gold in the sun. Ryoga looked into its eyes and it was like staring into the starlit sky at night. He felt as if he was drowning in the abysmal, inky darkness.

_SON OF THE EASTERN ISLES, HEAR OUR WORDS._

It was a voice, but at the same time, it wasn't a voice at all. It echoed across the sky like thunder. It whispered like the wind in the grass. Ryoga had heard about telepathy. Supposedly, it was when someone was talking inside of your head. This voice wasn't just talking inside his head, though, but inside his entire body. And, for that matter, outside of it as well.

"Eh, okay," he said. His own voice sounded puny in comparison.

_THE MAN-BOY HAS BETRAYED OUR TRUST BY MISUSING THE GIFT OF XULONG. HE DOES NOT DESERVE OUR POWER. YOU MUST FREE US._

"How?" Ryoga asked.

_HE CARRIES THE GIFT OF XULONG TO HIS PEOPLE AROUND HIS NECK. DESTROY IT, AND WE SHALL BE SET FREE._

Ryoga recalled the object he had spotted around Whiskey's neck. "Um, Okay. I'll try my best."

_DO SO._

All of a sudden, gravity returned to normal and the earth was back underneath him. Unfortunately, so was Whiskey and his dragon.

It immediately snatched him out of the air, closing its jaws around his body and right arm. Ryoga growled from the pain and tried to free himself with his other arm, but it was too strong even for him. Whiskey threw his head back and laughed.

"Ryoga!" Ranma and Akane both cried out at once.

"Ranma! Now, while he's distracted!" Cologne said. "Shampoo, Mousse, you too!"

"I'm coming too!" Akane said, clenching her fists. "We have to help Ryoga!"

"Oh, what the hell!" Ukyo said and drew her combat spatula. "Me too!"

"Right, let's go!" Ranma said, and without hesitation all six of them sprung forth.

Meanwhile, the dragon had lowered its head, holding Ryoga upside-down in front of the triumphant Whiskey. Ryoga could see it clearly now; a pearl about the size of a golf ball resting on Whiskey's chest, the focal point of the infinite stream of power.

The Chinese barbarian smirked. "This is the end," he said, leaning forward to look Ryoga in the eyes. "Any last words?"

The dragon's teeth pierced Ryoga's flesh and the heat burned his body, but despite the pain he still managed a triumphant smile.

"Yeah," he said. Raising his free arm, he reached out and tapped the pearl with his finger. "Bakusai tenketsu..."

In an instant, a thousand cracks covered the pearl an a heartbeat later it shattered. The red flames turned bright white and the group of would-be rescuers stopped dead in their tracks as the dragon dropped Ryoga unceremoniously on the ground. The white behemoth raised its head towards the sky and let out a roar that drowned Whiskey's anguished cry. Then it dissipated in the air and vanished as Whiskey's aura died away.

Whiskey stumbled back, staring at his hands in shock and horror. "No! No! You fool, do you have any idea what you've done?"

"Aw, did I ruin your little toy?" Ryoga asked while picking himself up. His torn clothes sizzled, his body was covered in burns and bruises and he had several shallow wounds from where the dragon had bitten him. The pain didn't matter much to him, though. He had beaten it.

"Damn you!" Whiskey yelled. "I'll kill you for this!"

He threw a punch, but Ryoga blocked it. Whiskey threw another punch, and another, and another. But Ryoga blocked all of them with a slightly puzzled look on his face.

Whiskey's attacks were much slower and weaker now, he realized, and his movements were clumsy and predictable. Even wounded and exhausted, Ryoga found that he had no trouble defending himself. He stopped blocking Whiskey's attacks and started dodging instead.

Ranma frowned. "The hell? He's fighting like crap compared to before!"

"Seems like the pearl was augmenting his martial arts skill as well," Cologned mused. "Now he has nothing but himself."

"Whiskey," Ryoga said, still dodging kicks and punches, "You haven't actually done any _training _these last two years, have you?"

"Shut up!" Whiskey growled. He intensified his assault, but Ryoga had already had enough. He found an opening and struck Whiskey in the chest. The blow threw the amazon clean off his feet and he rolled across the ground as he landed.

"I guess that settles it," Ryoga said. "You might as well give up right now, Whiskey."

"No!" Whiskey said, desperately getting back on his feet. "No! No! NO! _This can't be!" _With a crazed, feverish look in his eyes, he threw himself at his enemy. _"DIE, HIBIKI RYOGA!"_

But then something unexpected happened. A small and very fast thing resembling a gray and brown comet suddenly appear out of nowhere and struck Whiskey in the back of the head. The barbarian's eyes rolled back and he fell to the ground like a clubbed ox. The mysterious object then circled him several times at blinding speed while brandishing a rope, until Whiskey was neatly tied up from his shoulder to his feet. "There! Tha' oughta do it."

For a moment, everyone simply stared at the creature, trying to decide what they were seeing. "It's a living head!" one of the girls shrieked.

"I ain't no heid!" the apparition yelled. "I'm a man, an' dun ye ferget it!"

The tiny figure appeared to be an elderly human male, though this was difficult to tell clearly. His only visible facial features was his large eyes, the rest was efficiently hidden by the enormous white beard and straggly hair, most of which was tied up in an impressive topknot on his head. To make matters worse, he was dragging along an ancient Chinese broadsword in an incredibly worn leather scabbard. The weapon was longer then his entire body.

By then Whiskey had regained consciousness, and he now stared at the old man with shock and surprise on his face. "Grandmaster Champagne! What are _you _doing here Japan?"

"Ah suspected that ye might've 'ad some trouble o' this quest o' yers, me lad," the old man said. He spoke in a thick, peculiar accent that, while certainly Chinese, was unlike anything they had ever heard before. "So Ah came along te keep an eye on ye. And Ah see ye've already managed te get yon'self in trouble." He turned to the others. "Terr'bly sorry 'boot all a'this."

"...Hold on a minute! Champagne_?"_ Cologne said, staring at the old man. "Chhaang Champagne, is that you? It's me, Cologne!"

"Co... Cologne?" Squinting slightly, the elderly barbarian approached the amazon matriarch. He jumped up on his sword, balancing on it the same way Cologne did on her staff, brining them the the same height. His eyes lit up in recognition. "Xulong's hand! It _is _ye! Bonnie lass, Ah haven't seen ye in decades!"

"Old comrade!"

"Dear freen!"

The representatives of the younger generation stared at the reunion in disbelief. Even Whiskey seemed baffled.

"You've got to be kidding me," Ryoga mumbled.

"The worst part," Ranma said, "is that I'm not really surprised."

"What in all the world are you doing here in Japan, after all this time?" Cologne asked.

Champagne gestured at Whiskey. "Fam'ly matters. Ye've met me great-gran'son a'ready. Bit o' an black sheep, sad te say, always causin' trouble fer tha rest o' us."

"Hey!" Whiskey said. "At least I take the honor of the tribe seriously! Now release me, old man, so that I may exact my rightful vengeance upon Hibiki Ryoga!"

"Ha! Dinna go talkin' aboot tha honour o' tha tribe, lad," Champagne scoffed. "All thas happened is yer own damn fault an' ye knows it."

"But he destroyed the Dragon Soul Pearl!"

Champagne paused, and then he sighed. "So, lemme see if Ah've got this 'ere straight. Yer sayin' tha not only have ye managed tae loose tha Heavenly Eternity Cloth, but now ye've succeeded tae get tha Dragon Soul Pearl destroyed as well? Tha very same pearl, Ah might add, tha ye took _wi'out permission _when ye left tha village on this fool's errand o' yers!"

Whiskey glowered. "I had to restore our honor."

"Ye had ta restore yon _pride_," Champagne said sharply, "fer bein' denied a lass ye were ne'er supposed te marry in tha first place!"

"Wait, hold on!" Akane said and glared at the old barbarian. "Let's be fair now, wasn't it was the insane customs of your tribe that started this whole mess?"

"Oh?" Champagne raised a bushy eyebrow. "Whit do ye mean?"

"I'm talking about your _disgusting _habit of treating women like property and using them as fighting prizes," Akane said. "Whiskey defeated Chicha's father, didn't he?"

"Ah, _thas!" _Champagne chuckled. "No, see, them old traditions're nay much practiced anymore. These days, tha battle 'tween tha father and tha groom be more of ae cermonial mock-bout than an actual fight. Chicha's father 'ad already gone an made up wi' Liqueur 'boot tha marriage, but Whiskey 'ere caught wind o' tha matter an ambushed him wi'out warning. Liqueur was very upset aboot tha whole affair."

"Oh," Akane said. This explanation seemed to have calmed her. "Can't say I blame him, really."

"O'coors, tha law be still tha law," Champagne continued. "After beatin' Chicha's father, Whiskey had tha legal right tae do wha'ever he damned well pleased wi' tha lass. 'Twas good fortune Hibiki showed up when he did, saved me tha trouble tae beat Whiskey up meself."

"So, um, we cool?" Ryoga asked. He pointed to his bandanna. "What about this thing?"

"Keep it! It belongs te ye now," Champagne said. "Whiskey gave it tae Chicha by his own free will. 'Tis not oors te claim anymore."

Then he picked his tied-up great-grandson up as if he was light as a feather, and ignoring Whiskey's vehement protests, turned to the group. "Well, we must be goin' now," he said.

"Drop by at the Nekohanten some time," Cologne said. "We have much to talk about, you and I."

Champagne smiled at her. "That we do, ol' freen, that we do."

And then he bounded away over the rooftops with his burden, until all that remained was Whiskey's cry echoing over the skyline:

_"Damn you, Hibiki Ryoga! I'll get you if it's the last thing I do! This is all your faaauuuuuuuuult!"_

Ryoga looked to Ranma. "Karma, huh?"

"Don't worry, you'll get used to it," Ranma said. "How you holding up? You took a real beating this time."

Ryoga chuckled. "Oh you know me, nearly indestructible and all that." He staggered slightly and added: "Though, now that you mention it... I do feel... kinda... sleepy..."

Then his legs gave in and he crumbled. Ranma managed to catch him before he hit the ground, and the last thing Ryoga saw was the worried faces of his friends as they called out his name. Then darkness swallowed up his mind and he fell deep into unconsciousness.

* * *

Author's Note: Finally!

I hope Champagne's accent was readable. My sincerest apology to any and all Scottish readers.

Also, for those reviewers who previously commented that I wrote "alot" instead of "a lot"; you were all absolutely right, and I will never ever make that mistake again. Thank you!


End file.
